Trust in Me
by PathlessSpore
Summary: Emily Branson is a powerful Witch with little control over her powers. Inside she desires someone who understands what it's like to be treated so dangerously. Bruce Banner, the good doctor living with The Hulk inside him, knows exactly how she feels. He knows he can help her, to teach her control. And maybe, just maybe, she can be the balm to the rage he feels within.
1. Prologue

Trust in me  
Avengers Fanfic  
Bruce/OC  
Prologue

_And I don't even know what kind of things I said  
My mouth kept moving and my mind went dead  
So I'm picking up the pieces, now where to begin?  
The hardest part of ending is starting on again_

_Waiting for the end-Linkin Park_

* * *

It was official; Emily had to be utterly and completely out of her mind for agreeing to this. She was in Paris, the cobblestone streets were well worn with the occasional passerby in the afternoon sun. Many citizens were enjoying lunch as a car passed in the road. She was standing on the sidewalk in front of a café; the small shop was empty except for a man she could clearly see in the window. He was looking down at a folder in his hand, waiting patiently for someone. He looked tall, wore a black trench coat and had an eye patch over his left eye. He was a dark skinned African American man that seemed to be in his middle thirties. Emily swallowed nervously and looked down in the note in her hand,

_It is time for us to meet_

Along with the address scribbled hastily underneath, that was all the note said. Emily tugged nervously on her blouse. Her brandy colored hair was so long she had to braid it, but that didn't stop it from touching the ground. Her face was elegantly shaped, with full luscious lips and icy blue eyes. She was only an inch or two over five feet, dressed in a tan and white blouse with a pair of faded blue jeans topped off with a pair of tan hiking boots.

Emily Branson gave a shuddering sigh and steeled her courage. She adjusted her satchel that held the book that had changed, and possibly, ruined her life. She pushed open the door, a tinkling sound from the bell caused the man to look up and watch her walk in. She swallowed; her nerves were already on edge. She didn't feel threatened but every nerve in her body wanted her to turn tail and run. She ignored her doubt and stumbled up to the small round table the tall male was sitting at. There was no doubt in her mind this was the person she was supposed to meet; his next words confirmed it,

"Do you want something to eat, Ms. Branson?" He asked politely, "You look a little starved." There was no way he knew her name unless he already had information on her. How much did he know? Words failed her so she just nodded and sat down with him. With a flick of the wrist the woman who had been managing the store hurried over and slid a plate of scones and croissants in front of her. Emily's stomach started to rumble at the sight and smell of the food in front of her. It had been a day or two since she had last eaten, she couldn't risk walking into a store for fear of being recognized. Especially after the incident in Venice.

"That'll be all, thank you." Said the man, the woman bowed her head a bit and turned to leave the store. This was obviously a private meeting between the two. Slowly, Emily picked up her food and began to eat. Sweets like this had suddenly become a luxury in the last year since she had found the book. As she ate her fill, the man waited patiently for her to finish, he didn't look irritated at her. He only seemed to make sure she was eating enough, a look of concern in his eyes.

Finally she pushed away her plate; only crumbs remained. "Thank you." She whispered, the man nodded and closed the folder he was looking at, apprehensively she looked away, "If I may ask, sir-"

"What are you doing here?" he finished for her; he smirked at her and set down the folder in front of her. She gave him a quick glance before she timidly opened it. She cringed as she recognized the street in Venice she had completely wiped out. Her companion nodded, "I'm here about that." Terrified she looked up. She felt panic rising in her chest, her heart beat faster and in response to the overflow of energy in her body the windows started to rattle violently. The dark skinned male just smiled civilly at her,

"Ms. Branson, I'm not here to kill you. I'm here to offer you help."

Slowly everything calmed, Emily eyed him suspiciously, "Help?" she asked lowly, and she looked down at her hands. "How can you help me?"

"By giving you a safe home," came his answer, she looked up at him, "A home where you don't have to hide who you are. A home where no one is going to hunt you down so they can use your gift for evil or to experiment on you. We understand that many others have offered the same thing only to betray you, I understand that you have your doubts."

Emily scoffed, "You call it a gift, but it is nothing but my curse. You offer to help me control it? How, do you have someone that can teach me?! Or are you going to stick me in a room and tell me to try?"

"For right now," his words were slow; he was being careful on how he said his next phrase, "It is all we can offer."

Emily wanted to cry, what else could she do? Here she was eighteen years old and she had nowhere to go and no home to go back to. Everyone wanted her either dead or alive so they could poke her with needles. She abruptly stood throwing the chair back; she tried her hardest to stop the tears from falling as she gave a bow of her head,

"I'm very sorry, but I must decline your offer. If you can give me no real help then I am better off on my own."

She turned to leave, she was about to walk through the door when he called to her,

"We're not going to force you, Emily. The decision is up to you. But let me ask you one thing?" She looked back at him; the man was now picking up the chair she had thrown to the floor. "What will you do when you lose control again?" She hesitated with an answer, "Where will you go? Who will willingly let you into their home? Everyone around the world knows your face for what you did in Venice."

"That wasn't my fault!" she snapped back, she clutched the satchel tightly in her arms. If that man hadn't tried taking her book, the very thing that had been her life for a year, she never would have lost control. She never would have destroyed that street, that poor little girl with the white teddy bear would have never died.

"I know that, but what will you do if it happens again? Because if it does, the next time we meet will not be on pleasant term, Ms. Branson."

Emily gave a strangled sob; she just wanted to be normal again, or as normal as she could possibly get. She wanted to go to college to get her degree in music. She wanted to play the piano all over the world. She wished she could go back in time so she could stop herself from finding that stupid book in the ruins. She looked up at the man, he had slowly walked up to her, his face showing genuine kindness and worry, as if he truly wanted to help her. And she had no doubts that if she did leave and lose control again, he would come to kill her.

Emily nodded her head, "Ok," she whispered, her shoulders dropped in defeat. "I accept you offer." Utter relief washed over this man's face, he had been hoping she would accept. She could see that, he didn't want her to go, but she held up her hand before he could speak, "But why? Why do you want to help me?"

He gave her an inquisitive look, "Because, for what it's worth, I believe that you can save the world if you tried. Your powers, your curse, can be made into something good. I believe in you, and, in time, so will everyone else." Emily looked out the door window; she couldn't imagine what it would be like for someone to thank her for using her powers like that. But she couldn't help latching onto the idea, praying that she could make a difference. She wiped away her tears and smiled softly, perhaps that was something worth fighting for; she turned back to the man and nodded. He held out his hand for her to shake,

"My name is Nick Fury, I'm Director of an organization called S. H. E. I. L. D., welcome to the family, Ms. Branson."

* * *

_Well with this, "Angel" and "What I've been looking for." I certainly have a lot on my plate. But I was re-watching The Avengers the other day and it occurred to me that the guy who plays Bruce Banner, who was remarkable by the way, Mark Ruffalo , He is so damn cute it's got to be illegal. So I was inspired to write this after I watched it, because Bruce needs some happiness in his life._

_And to be clear on things, Emily is a witch, not by choice. I will have her explain things later on in the story but this is just a clarifier. Which also explains the black book that gave her, her powers. So Read and review please. I spent a lot of time on this._

_P.S. Emily's Theme is "Molde Canticle" by Sissle. You can find it on grooveshark and on youtube, so look it up and let me know what you think about her theme._

_PathlessSpore_

_Update: Fixed some errors and cleaned up the grammar._


	2. The Witch and The Man

Trust in Me  
Avengers Fanfic  
Bruce Banner/ OC  
Chapter 1  
The Witch and the Man

_Do you feel cold and lost in desperation  
You've built up hope but failure's all you've known  
Remember all the sadness and frustration  
And let it go  
Let it go_

_Iridescent-Linkin Park_

* * *

"Concentrate Emily."

The brandy haired young woman frowned; a sheen of sweat lined her forehead as she huffed. Emily's head hurt like nothing else from focusing so hard. Her hands were shaking and sore from being stretched out for so long; because she still had yet to cast a spell without using them to power it or direct it where she wanted it to go. In front of Emily resting on a small podium was her Spell book, The Mantra Incantus. It was incredibly thick and heavy, with well-worn and faded pages filled with words only she could understand. The cover was black with the image of a gold weeping willow depicted on the front with a snake coiled at the base. Her book was opened towards the beginning, where all the basic spells and incantations were located.

Emily was on the lowest floor of the S.H. I. E. L. D. Helicarrier, which had just been opened to the lower seated agents. Emily had been first put here when she arrived with Nick Fury nearly six months ago, he gave her a certain amount of clearance, enough for her to be here, but she didn't know all the good dirty secrets. Like where Nick was now. A few hours ago he had been called in somewhere because of an emergency at one of the research facilities. The large carrier was now resting on the ocean, which made concentrating on her current spell infinitely harder. She was in a room made of the most resistant metals on earth, which came in handy when one of Emily's spells backfired, which happened more often than one thought. In the middle of her personal training room was a small flame flickering in midair, a bluish bubble seemed to surround it as she frowned.

It was a simple expansion spell. Something she should have been able to do months ago. But it was giving her so much trouble; all she had to do was expand it while keeping the temperature the same. But it was so much harder than it looked. The tiny fire wanted to be free to consume whatever it pleased; it fought her for all that it was worth while it slowly wore her out.

"You've got it, Em!"

And Cassidy, the black-haired agent that had been assigned as her personal cheerleader, certainly wasn't helping. Emily scowled as bead of sweat ran down her temple; she wasn't going to let this get the best of her. Not this time. She poured every ounce of willpower into her hands and sent it out toward the tiny flame, urging it to grow. Slowly it got bigger, she watched in triumph as it got big enough to easily fit into her palm but her victory was short lived as it suddenly compressed. Both women gasped and turned tail to duck behind the wall which acted as cover for moments like this.

Suddenly an explosion shook the room, and possibly the whole Helicarrier. The room temperature turned sweltering as the flame died from going supernova. Then slowly it died as Cassidy and Emily cautiously looked out from behind the wall. The room was scorched black, steam rolled off of the walls. She had even managed to melt the floor a bit and for a moment she was thankful the hull was thick. Next to her, Cassidy turned and went to say something, but she was cut off when Emily held up her hand,

"Don't." she muttered angrily, with a snort of disgust and impatience she stalked up to the podium, or its remains. It was a pile of ash now, and sitting on top without as much as a scorch on it, was her Mantra Incantus. Irate now at her recent failure she stooped down to pick it up and she stomped out the door, before it slammed behind her she heard the black-haired agent call out,

"It could have been worse!"

* * *

Emily sat in the cafeteria moodily picking at her food still upset over the spell she had managed to botch. It had been six long months since she had joined S. H. I. E. L. D. when they offered to help her, but she was no closer to understanding her powers than she was before. This place had been her home since then, and in that time she was still questioning what she had become. With a sigh she pushed away her plate her appetite suddenly gone. She dropped her head on her hand and proceeded to brood with a vengeance.

Nick would tell her she was being too hard on herself, that control would come with time and all she had to do was be patient. Perhaps he was right, she was always hard on herself, even before she obtained the book. Having to constantly prove herself to a family that despised her wasn't all the great for her self-confidence. It was hard to hear that she'd never amount to anything.

She sat there at the worn table for a good twenty minutes, grumbling to herself nonetheless, when a shadow fell over her. She looked up see an agent she had never met before; he was polite as he nodded in greeting.

"Director Fury would like to see you up on the bridge, Ma'am."

"Thank you." She replied as he turned to leave, she watched him go. She had come to call the stern director a friend, even if she didn't understand all of his actions and motives. But she knew better than to trust him entirely, as kind to her as he may be she knew he always had ulterior motives. He was leader who had to make the hard choices, even if he didn't like them.

Emily heaved a sigh and pushed herself away from the table, after disposing her plate she exited the cafeteria to head up to the bridge. Six months ago these hallways had been confusing, cutting off into rooms and levels she wasn't allowed to be in, but since then she had learned to navigate them easily. She wandered into the semi busy bridge to find Nick Fury standing on the walk, doing something on his computer. Voices milled about, creating a drone in the room as they talked to one another.

"Please sit, Ms. Branson." Director Fury turned and indicated to the large table. Emily slid into a nearby chair and looked down as Nick pressed a button. A picture of a man with long black hair and a glowing scepter appeared on-screen; next to it was a picture of a bluish cube.

"As you know, I was called in last night to one of our research facilities." Emily nodded, "It was there we are working on a project that has the capability to create unlimited energy. The cube you see the key to all that research, but last night it decided to turn itself on. The cube acts as a doorway, between one end of space to the other, last night something came through that door. That man," the picture enlarged a bit, "managed to turn two of our finest agents against us and took the cube."

Emily frowned, "I understand that sir, but what does this have to do with me?"

"Ms. Branson, the Tessaract is in the hands of a hostile force that plans to end the world. In response to this event I have decided to bring together the greatest among us to help find the cube and, if need be, defend us."

"That still doesn't answer my question."

Nick sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose, he looked worn out and beaten. He pressed another button, the images she had seen before were replaced with a new one. The man had to be entering his thirties or was in his mid thirties, with pepper gray hair and brown eyes. The first thought that instantly entered Emily's head was that he was cute, so much that it should have been illegal. With shock she pushed the thought back blaming her hormones; she was eighteen after all. This man was way out of her league.

"His name is Bruce Banner and he is the only one with enough experience in Gamma radiation to help us find the Tessaract. He is also very special for what Gamma Radiation did to him," a picture of a giant green monster appeared on-screen. "When Br. Banner's heart rate reaches unhealthy heights he changes into what we call "The Hulk". This thing that lives inside of him is highly dangerous, especially if you agitate him. Over the years Dr. Banner has desperately tried to find a cure, we believe he had finally learned to live with his condition, honing his control over his body to confine The Hulk within himself."

Nick stepped down from his spot and walked up to the table, he was dead serious as he looked down at her, "I'll be honest with you Ms. Branson, I need your help. I'm a little reluctant to send in an agent armed with a gun. Dr. Banner is no fool and we need him desperately if we are to avoid a war like nothing the earth has ever seen."

Emily gave a strangled laugh, she ran her hand over her head, "I don't know Director, I mean if this guy is as dangerous as you say-"

"Dr. Banner himself isn't dangerous, only when you get his heart rate up. Then you have all the reason in the world to worry."

"Fine, but why me?"

"Because," answered Nick simply, as if it should have been obvious, "While you are your own worst critic, you give others a sense of calm. You are kind and understanding. I'm hoping to use that to convince the good Doctor to join us."

Emily heaved a sigh, at this point there was no arguing with Nick. Not when he believed in her this much, if he said she could do it she better find a way to try.

"Don't worry," he stood up and fold his arms behind his back, "I won't send you in alone, you'll have a squadron of men surrounding the meeting point along with Agent Romanoff-"

"No!' interjected Emily, she stood up and shook her head wildly, 'If you want me to bring him in peacefully then no men with guns. Agent Romanoff is fine, but she isn't to be on the property. It's just going to be me and Bruce. No one else."

"You're sure?" he asked seriously, he regarded her with some admiration, "If he turns on you, you're on your own."

"No men with guns." Repeated Emily, standing firm. Director Fury eyed her then nodded wearily,

"Very well then."

* * *

Bruce felt like such an idiot for falling for that little girl's big brown eyes. He lost it when she whimpered please, honestly who couldn't tell her "No", and since he had come to live with his anger management issues, he had promised himself to help others who truly needed it. So he wasn't about to turn her away regardless if she had money or not. He followed her through the streets of Calcutta pushing aside the swarms of sweaty people to keep her in his eyesight. Once or twice he thought he had lost her only to find her waiting for him not far away. Bruce and the little girl had managed to get to the outskirts of the city, heading toward a falling apart hovel. An army truck passed by, he stopped the girl from crossing while he hid his face. The last thing he needed was to catch the attention of the local militia. When it was safe he let her go and he followed behind her as they entered the door way.

He reached the middle of the room as she ran into the back, slightly shocked he grabbed onto a nearby support as he watched her climb onto the bed and jump out the window. He scoffed, mentally hitting himself in the head,

"Should've got paid up front Banner." He muttered to himself, he didn't expect someone to answer him back with a laugh. He swiveled around to find a young woman standing in the door way of the kitchen, her long hair braided back while it dragged on the floor. She wore a pair of skinny jeans with high top sneakers; her top was a white blouse. She had a pretty face with icy blue eyes and brandy colored hair. She gave him a soft smile and instantly Bruce felt his heart drop into his stomach. There was no way in hell a young pretty girl was standing there and smiling at him.

"I'm sorry," she said softly as she realized she just laughed at him, "I shouldn't laugh, that was rude of me." She was soft spoken, "I just can't believe a man who should be avoiding stress would settle in a place like this." Her arms indicated to all around her as she looked back at him and smiled. He wished she wouldn't do that; he was starting to like it. Bruce dropped the satchel he was carrying as he stepped back from the support,

"Avoiding stress isn't the secret." He answered back; she just stood there and gave him that sweet look on her face. He should have turned tail and ran for it, he could easily lose her in the streets, but something about her made him stay.

"Is it music then? Or reading?"

He gave her a nervous smile and chuckled a bit, he wrung his hands as he looked about, "You brought me to the edge of the city, smart." He turned to walk to the window and look out, trying to see people he was sure that were there, "I-uh-assume the whole place is surrounded?" He turned to look at her but she shook her head,

"No Bruce, it's just you and me." She stepped a bit into the room, observing him with a gentle kindness in her eyes. God everything about her should have sent him running, she was too nice, too kind to just want to sit here and talk. Logical Bruce was running around in circles inside his head, yelling at him to get his rear in gear and bolt out the door. But there was just something about her that made him want to stay, so he pushed aside logical Bruce for now.

"Who are you?" It came out harsher than he had meant to. He didn't want to be rude to someone who actually seemed to know who he was and didn't to judge him for it.

"Emily Branson."

He didn't want to say the next words, but it was bugging him immensely, he doubted this girl could do it anyway,

"Are you here to kill me, Ms. Branson, because that's not going to work out… for everyone."

She gave him a small chuckle, "No Bruce, I couldn't hurt a fly, even if I tried. You're safe here with me." He desperately wanted to believe those words, it would have been a nice change of pace, she gave a sigh as she looked down, "I'm here of the behalf of S.H.I.E.L.D." She seemed to know that he didn't want to hear those words because she gave him an apologetic look as he looked away and muttered,

"S.H.I.E.L.D.," Bruce thought he had hidden himself away; her words dashed away that hope. Logical Bruce was back and his hair was on fire now, he was screaming at him to get out of there when she had uttered those words, but he still wanted to stay put even if he could sense danger all about him, "How did they find me?"

Emily shrugged, "They never lost you Bruce, and they've kept their distance and even managed to throw some interested parties off your trail."

"Why?"

She just gave him her smile, "I don't know, I'm not really an agent." He was a bit shocked to find that out. Why didn't S.H.I.E.L.D. send one of theirs to talk to him, why send a young defenseless girl up against a monster. But the way she looked at him, the way she made him feel, she didn't make him seem like a monster, just a regular man. "S.H.I.E.L.D offered me help when I was in a bit of a bind; they gave me a home and a place to hone my gift."

"Your gift?"

"A couple months ago there was an incident in Venice, Italy," Bruce recalled seeing the paper about that, an entire street just gone within a matter of moments. His jaw almost dropped in shock as he realized what she was talking about,

"You caused that?"

"Not on purpose, but, yes." She waved her hand impatiently as she frowned a bit, Bruce felt bad instantly. He knew better than anyone else what it was like to control powers he never wanted, and it was clear to him she had never asked for her gift. He thought he had just ruined the entire moment when she shook her head and her soft smile returned,

"The thing is, Bruce, S.H.I.E.L.D. would like you to come in."

It was at this time he wanted to press his luck, to see how far she would go to convince him to go with her, "and what if I say no?"

"I won't force you; you are your own person, Bruce. You can make your own decisions."

It wasn't really himself that he had to worry about, god if this girl wanted him on his hands and knees at this moment he'd do it. It was the other one who was the problem. Despite what he kept telling himself, Bruce knew that his other half had a mind of its own. Split personalities had nothing on this.

"And what if the Other Guy says no?"

She regarded him for a moment, "He'll find I'm very hard to argue with," he wanted to laugh at her, she gave him a mischievous smirk, "But Bruce it's been more than a year without an incident, I very much doubt you want to break that streak."

He gave a dry chuckle as he walked over to a crib nearby, she was watching him regard it with a tinge of sadness of what could never be, "I don't every time get what I want," he rocked it slowly back and forth as she backed up and went to sit at a nearby table. She pulled out a phone from her pocket and set it down,

"Bruce, we are potentially facing a global catastrophe."

He laughed this time, "Now those I actively try to avoid." She giggled at his humor and gestured to the phone, wanting him to look at it. He pushed himself from the crib and walked over while pulling out his glasses, "This is the Tessaract," she explained, "It has the potential energy to wipe out the planet."

He picked up the phone and studied it briefly, "What does Fury want me to do? Swallow it?"

She shook her head, amusement dancing in her eyes. Why did she find his humor funny, there was nothing funny about him and what he could do. But every time she did it he wanted to laugh too. Why was she making him feel so human, she should have been at least a good three feet away from him, fear lurking behind her clear eyes.

"He wants you to find it," she sat back in her chair with her arms folded across the table, "It's been taken apparently, which is sending Fury into a fritz. He says it emits a Gamma Signature that's too weak for S.H.I.E.L.D to trace. There's no one else who knows Gamma radiation like you do Bruce, if there was I wouldn't be here talking to you."

Bruce removed his glasses, an inkling of a suspicion in the back of his mind, "So Fury isn't after the monster?"

She sighed, knowing full well where he was going with this. He could tell she didn't trust the Director despite what he had given her, she gave a shrug of her shoulders, "Not that he's told me."

"And he tells you everything?" he scoffed lightly, she knew what he could do if he lost control. There was no way Fury would send her in that blind. But what would her reaction be to that kind of threat, everyone he had come across would run away screaming or try to kill him. He was curious on what she would do.

"Please Bruce," she asked lightly, her eyes never left his face, "Talk to Director Fury, he needs you in this."

"He needs me in a cage." Was his curt reply, she looked a little hurt at his retort,

"No one wants to put you in a ca-"

"STOP LYING TO ME!" Bruce slammed his hands on the table, sending her reeling out of her chair and up against the walls. The foundation of the hovel started to shake as she looked him wide-eyed, her chest heaving a mile a minute. He backed up with his hands out in front of him,

"I'm sorry, that was mean," he apologized, she swallowed hard looking at him as she stood frozen in place, "I just wanted to see what you would do." She didn't move, the house was still shaking uncontrollably as he tried his best to get her to calm down, "Why don't we do this the easy way," Bruce was afraid he might have broken her, she still had yet to blink at him, "where you don't bring the house down on top of us, and the other guy doesn't make a mess." Nothing, not a word nor a whimper, only her chest heaving as she tried to get oxygen to her lungs, "Ok?" She was shaking now, clenching the fabric of her jeans, "Emily?"

She finally let out the breath she seemed to be holding, the house came to a stop as she looked down. Bruce gave a sigh of relief as she smoothed out her shirt. She looked shaken as she gazed back up at him, but instead of regarding him with animosity she seemed visibly amused though still a little shocked,

"Why didn't you pull the gun out from under the table?" He knew damn well that there had been one, she gave him a laugh. A loud peal that sounded almost like a bell,

"Because," she shook her head "It wouldn't have done me any good, Bruce." She gave another sigh and walked towards him, she brushed past him easily sending the smell of lilacs up his nose. He turned to watch her leave but as she was about to walk through the door she gave him one last look,

"It was as I said, I won't force you." With that she left and started to disappear down the front lawn. He hesitated a moment before he bolted out the door after her,

"Emily," he called out, she stopped as he came running up to her, "I'll go." Panting he watched as blue eyes met his brown ones searching for any falter in them. When she found none he was rewarded with the smile he loved so much, the one that made him feel like a twelve-year-old again. She reached out and laced her fingers with his. He looked down a little surprised to see her tiny hand in his,

"If you'll follow me then, Bruce." He nodded dumbly as he allowed her to drag him along the street towards a wooded area. It was for the first time that night he realized that she had never called him Doctor Banner once, it was always Bruce. And for a moment, that made him feel a little more normal than usual.

* * *

_Well it wasn't as good as I liked it, and it helps that I have this written down on paper. So you guys get another chapter. Yes I know it's almost exactly like the movie, but that's kind of the whole point of this. Except its Emily that gets Bruce to come along, not Natasha. So let me know what you think, and I'll see if I can get the next chapter out._

_P.S. Does any have any good theme ideas for Bruce? It's hard to find something that fits him._

_PathlessSpore_

_UPDATE: Fixed a few errors and spruced up some sentences _


	3. Let's do Science

Trust in Me  
Avengers Fanfic  
Bruce Banner / OC  
Chapter 2  
Let's do science

_Are we human, or are we denser?  
My sign is vital, my hands are cold  
And I'm on my knees looking for the answer  
Are we human, or are we denser?_

_Human-The Killers_

* * *

Emily was gripping onto the leather of the seat, the high-tech jet was slipping through the air heading toward the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier with all due haste. She really didn't do the whole flying thing, which was ironic because she lived on a flying deathtrap. But she usually preferred to keep both feet on the ground than trust a large vehicle to keep her airborne when it could easily fail and fall. She breathed deeply through her nose to keep herself from hyperventilating in the middle of the floor, Bruce Banner was trying not to look amused as he watched her silently freak out.

When Emily had left the Helicarrier to go meet Bruce she never expected a man like this. She almost anticipated him to be openly hostile, paranoid even (though he was to a degree). But in truth he was quiet and reserved; he seemed to look out for everyone else's welfare before his own. The moment he had walked into the broken down house she had liked him. Emily felt red creep up in her cheeks, there was no use thinking about that. He was just out of her league all together; no way would he look at someone who looked like she could be a sister or a cousin perhaps. He probably didn't even think of her that way.

The plane hit a bit of turbulence, shaking the vehicle around the air for a moment or two. Emily's stomach did a three sixty and dropped. Grumbling she focused on the seat in front of her as she held on for dear life,

"Are you ok?" Bruce had gotten up from his spot and was now sitting next to her, a look of open concern on his face. She nodded as she swallowed back her nervousness. Goodness she was acting like some fifteen year old hormonal teenager, though she still was at this point, but she was better than that. She smiled at him,

"I'm not a big fan of flying."

He tried not to laugh at her, half failing as they hit another spot of turbulence. Emily felt like she was going to be sick, which she hoped she wouldn't. The last thing she needed was to lose her lunch just because she got sick when she flew. Especially in front of the man who had dreamy brown eyes and silky hair that seemed to mix between curly and wavy. No, no she was not going to go down that path! Desperately she tried to think of anything else but the cute doctor next to her. She hardly realized they had come down for a landing until the back hatch opened up. With a huge sigh of relief she was up and out of her seat and down the ramp. She supported herself on a nearby crate, so glad to be back on something solid, though she was sure this thing was going to be airborne soon.

Bruce joined her as they sat and waited for their companions, they were supposed to meet Captain Steve Rogers who was being brought in on the Tessaract Mission. When Bruce found out the legendary Captain was coming he was shocked to find he was still alive. Sure he had seen the papers about his miraculous survival in the ice for over seventy years, but that still didn't stop his logical mind from questioning it. He had explained to Emily that something like it could have been possible, but when he started to get into the complex mechanics she stopped him. She was lucky she passed her Intro to Lab Sciences class in high school. He just laughed at her.

As Emily's stomach settled she watched Bruce from the corner of her eye, he seemed to be a little on edge. She certainly didn't blame him; all the men with guns were probably things he tried to avoid on a day-to-day basis. She wished she could have left him where he was, he seemed to be so much happier there. But then she had to think about it, was he truly happy? Living with something like The Hulk inside of him, always having to fight the second personality that would forever rule his life? Emily knew he had come to terms with his gift, even if he didn't see it that way, but giving up ever finding a cure meant there would be things in his life he could never enjoy. He would always be the outcast, the loose cannon everyone always watched out for. Emily knew exactly what that felt like.

A voice called out from across them, breaking Emily out of her stupor, "Doctor Banner!" A good looking man, with wavy dirty blonde hair came sidling up to him. She instantly recognized the famous Captain America as he came forward with his hand out for Bruce to shake. With a polite smile the doctor met him halfway and the men shook hands,

"Yeah, hi." Bruce gave him a quick once over, "They told me you'd be coming in." Steve nodded as Natasha Romanoff walked up from behind, waiting patiently for the men to finish their introduction. She gave Emily a nod and a smile before returning her attention the Captain and the doctor.

"Word is you can find the cube." Stated Steve, Bruce seemed to find that amusing,

"Is that the only word on me?"

"It's the only word I care about," assured the Captain as a look of relief washed over the other man's face.

"It must be strange," said Bruce as he indicated to more of the high-tech equipment, "all of this." The captain gave a chuckle as he looked around too,

"Well actually, this is kind of familiar." Emily was glad the two seemed to be getting along, she didn't know what Captain Rogers had been filled in on, everything she assumed, but he didn't seem to hold Bruce's history against him. Natasha gave the young woman a wink as she stood with her hands clasped behind her back,

"Gentleman," she said as people started to suddenly run about, they shouted orders to each other, "you might want to step inside, it's going to get a little hard to breathe."

A loud metallic thunk brought both men's attention around to the open sea while it shook the carrier a bit. Emily observed as Bruce and Steve gave each other curious looks as the sound of whirring engines reached their ears,

"Is this a submarine?" Inquired the Captain, Bruce gave a short laugh as both he and Rogers started to wander off towards the edge of the carrier. Natasha and Emily followed close behind; well Emily was just at Bruce's side grinning impishly up at him,

"Really? They want me in a submerged, pressurized, metal tube?" they stopped and looked down at the water, watching in amazement as it churned violently. From the depths four metal turbines were being lifted out of the water, slowly the blades powered on creating a loud whine as they slowly turned. All four engines were soon brought to full power as it started to lift the Helicarrier out of the ocean. Bruce suddenly realized what he was on and he gave a mirthless smile, "No, no, this is much worse."

Emily didn't know why she did what she did next, maybe she just wanted to relieve some of the stress he had to be feeling. This was a lot for him to take in and this was certainly not a place he wanted to be. She reached out and laced her fingers in his once again. Quickly Bruce's head turned and looked down at her, his eyes filled with a little surprise. She gave him a soft smile, squeezing his hand reassuringly as he swallowed hard. Natasha motioned for the trio to follow and all of them walked after her as she headed inside.

The red-haired spy led them to the bridge, which was busier than usual since they had just become airborne. Maria Hill was shouting out statuses to Nick Fury who was standing at his computer. Around them others were giving off statistics and energy level, making sure the Carrier was running the way it was supposed to. Steve Rogers had a look of complete and utter astonishment on his face as he looked around in awe. Bruce had let go of her hand to do a bit of his own exploring but he stopped short when he caught sight of the security in the room, quickly ducking his head around. Emily gave him a warm smile,

"It's ok." She whispered to him, he just nodded as he breathed in deep. They turned their attention to the front of the airship looking out of the glass windows at the clear blue sky. Above the usual clamor Maria Hill spoke loudly,

"All engines operating, S.H.I.E.L.D. Emergency protocol 193.6 in effect." She then turned to Director Fury, "We're at level Sir."

Nick nodded as he pushed a button on his computer, "Good, let's vanish."

"Engage retro reflection panels!" at that order Emily could feel the hull of the ship beginning to hum as power ran to the panels placed there. In mere moments they were hidden away from prying eyes, slowly skimming through the sky. Nick took one last look out at the open air before turning to address his present company.

"Gentleman," he stepped down from his spot to meet Captain Rogers who promptly gave him a ten-dollar bill. He then strode off down the walk his mouth still open with amazement. Nick seemed slightly amused as he pocketed the money and went over to greet Bruce and Emily,

"Doctor, thank you for coming." He held out his hand but Bruce seemed a little reluctant to take it.

"Thanks for asking nicely." Was his response, he gave Emily a quick glance before he returned his attention back to the director. It was so obvious he didn't want to be here at all. "So, uh, how long am I staying?"

"Once we get our hands on the Tesseract, you're in the wind." Bruce nodded though he looked like he didn't believe Nick. He wasn't an idiot, but she watched as he swallowed and walked off towards the railing leading down to the computers.

"Well where are you with that?" Nick pointed to Phil Coulson, who took over the explanation from there,

"We're sweeping every wirelessly accessible camera on the planet," Steve and Natasha joined them as he went on with his tirade, "Cell Phones, Laptops… If it's connected to a satellite, its eyes and ears for us."

Agent Romanoff sighed as she looked up from a screen she was fiddling with; she looked extremely unhappy, "It still won't find them in time."

Bruce shook his head, Emily could almost see the gears running in his head already, "You have to narrow your field," he sounded confident, they were in an area of science he understood better than anyone else did, "How many spectrometers do you have access to?"

"How many are there?" asked Nick, Bruce turned to Phil, "Call every lab you know, tell them to put the spectrometers on the roof," Emily watched in amusement as Bruce shed his jacket, looking ready and, dare she say it, excited to get to work. It was now her mind wanted to point out that he looked dashingly good in his purple shirt. Red crept up her cheeks again as she shoved the thought away, "and Calibrate them for Gamma Rays." Banner turned to Fury as he draped his jacket over his arm, "I'll rough out a tracking algorithm, basic cluster recognition. At least we could rule out a few places."

Nick nodded, obviously impressed, while Emily just shook her head in disbelief. Bruce glanced at her again and saw her expression. Amused and a tad confused he turned to her,

"What?" He tried to keep the laugh out of his tone. She giggled,

"I'll be honest with you; I didn't understand a word of that." With a grin the pepper haired doctor turned to Fury,

"Do you have somewhere for me to work?"

Nick nodded and turned to Natasha, "Agent Romanoff, could you show Dr. Banner to his laboratory, please."

More than happy to, Natasha got up and strode past him, "You're gonna love it, Doc," she said mildly, Bruce turned to follow her out, "We've got all the toys." Emily was about to step in line behind him when a reprimanding tone called out to her,

"No you don't, Ms. Branson." She stopped dead in her tracks and almost scowled at Nick, "You've got drills to do, down to the lower levels." With a repressed growl, Emily sighed in defeat and went off towards a different door. She gave Bruce one last look and found that he looked slightly upset that she wasn't coming along with him. She gave him a resigned smile,

"It's ok, Bruce," she gave him a wave of her hand, "You've got science to do, and I've got a training room to blow up." He looked like he wanted to argue, but he thought better against it and just nodded, "I'll come visit you later!" called Emily as he walked out the doors to follow Natasha to R&D. When he was gone she scowled again, definitely not looking forward to an hour of complete failure.

* * *

_Next Chapter, Yay! Thanks for the reviews you guys, It was certainly nice to see that you liked them. The only thing I ask is that you give me exact details on what you liked. The whole "It was awesome! Update!" is nice, and don't worry I will update. But seriously, this whole thing is a learning process, I want to know what I'm missing so I can apply it to the books I'm going to write in reality._

_So anyway, rant aside, please read and review. Flame if need be._

_PathlessSpore_

_UPDATE: Sentences and errors have been fixed_


	4. Progress

Trust in Me  
Avengers Fanfic  
Bruce Banner/ OC  
Chapter 3  
Progress

_There is nothing better than being with you  
and I'm feeling so nice  
there is no where better than here with you  
And it's feeling so nice_

_Nice- Duran Duran_

* * *

Natasha Romanoff, as the red-haired spy introduced herself, showed Bruce to his new home in R&D. It was a decent sized room filled with lab tables equipped to the brim with blinking and humming computers. The moment he walked through the sliding door the familiar environment made him feel more at ease, he was in a place where he worked best. The doctor tossed aside his jacket and went to the head of the room to look out onto the loading bay; he watched the activity for a moment or two before turning to the table behind him. On it was a large computer tablet that instantly came to life the second he touched the screen.

"Everything you need to know about the Tesseract is in there," explained Natasha, "Selvig's notes, you'll find, are very detailed. He reported everything he saw, any hypothesis he could think of is written in those reports. You'll also find profile information on other members who will be joining S.H.I.E.L.D in the effort to find the cube."

Bruce skipped over Selvig's research and headed straight to the profiles, he was a bit surprised to see Emily's name there but couldn't resist bringing it up. He frowned as he saw how little information there was on her. Height, weight, date of birth, even her blood type. But who she was and where she came from was a complete and utter blank. She said she had been at S.H.I.E.L.D for a couple of months; surely they had some information on her.

Agent Romanoff took his interest in the packet as a sign to leave, she spun to walk out the door when she stopped and half way turned to look at him.

"One more thing Doctor." He looked up at her through his silver rimmed glasses, "If you hear an explosion coming from the lower levels, try not to worry about it all that much."

Bruce couldn't stop the sarcastic laugh, "Don't worry about an explosion?"

Natasha smiled at his humor, "I know, but if there was something wrong one of the agents on the floor would notify you immediately. Any ruckus you might hear or feel is most likely caused by Emily down in the training room."

"About Emily…." He wished he didn't sound like some love sick teenager asking about his crush, "How did she obtain her gift?"

The spy sighed as she leaned against one of the nearby tables, "The truth is: we don't know. All we were able to find out was that she was staying with a relative when she happened across the book that gave her the powers she now wields. The Mantra Incantus, the book she found, unlocked her potential to use what we call Magick."

Bruce's eyes flickered down to her picture, in his mind he worked out her birth date. She was only eighteen. He frowned at this; he knew she was young, but damn. He was sure he had pinned her to be entering twenty, twenty-one if he wanted to push it. She wasn't jailbait, but she was close. Shaking his head he looked up to realize that Agent Romanoff was studying him almost too closely, he prayed he wasn't blushing. After a moment she shrugged,

"Anyway, if you want to know more about her, your best shot is asking her yourself. Good luck with that, though. No one has been able to get anything out of her yet."

With a slight hand good-bye she turned and left the room, leaving the scientist to stew in his own thoughts. He heaved a sigh through his nose as he removed his glasses and turned to lean on the table. Emily was too young to be in a place like this, to be under S.H.I.E.L.D.'s thumb. She had a lot of her life yet to live, places to go and people to meet. She didn't deserve to be under lock and key while all the agents skirted around her like she was a bomb waiting to go off. He knew what that felt like, and she was brave to pretend she didn't see it. But she wasn't stupid, far from it actually, she knew better than to hand out information that could be used against her. But Bruce would be lying to himself if he said he wasn't just a tad curious about her. More than that if he wanted to wander down the darker, detailed, and more intimate paths of his mind.

Emily was beautiful, in a regal sort of way; he'd be a moron to deny that. And the best thing about that beauty, she didn't seem to know she possessed it. She wasn't shallow or self-centered. But besides her physical beauty, her personality drew him in like a moth to a flame. She was kind, and accepting, funny, and so completely different from everyone else. Bruce could see the hate and the animosity, the agents and soldiers he passed by all had it in their eyes. They would treat him like a monster because they knew he turned into one, never understanding that the two were slightly different. But Emily? She treated him like a normal human being, something that was so bizarre to him it was almost like a drug he had become addicted to.

Red crept up into his cheeks as he thought about Emily some more, the elegant way she seemed to carry herself, like she had come from a family of good breeding. Every curve of her tantalizing body was accentuated but not in a promiscuous way. Bruce wasn't even paying attention to what was going on outside the window, too lost in his own fantasy land. He was about to mentally undress Emily when Logical Bruce suddenly burst into the room and hit him upside the head with a rolled up newspaper, then adding insult to injury he began spraying him with a water bottle.

Quickly Bruce back pedaled out of forbidden territory and straight back to reality. With a gasp he turned to brace himself on the table, fighting back his quickening pulse which his skyrocketed without his notice. This was complete insanity, he had just met the girl and she was already testing his somehow waning control. And she wasn't even in the room. God forbid she ever be alone with him, he didn't know if he could keep himself in check, if he was to ever be in her arms he'd be lost forever.

This wasn't fair; the situation, for him and most especially for her. If he didn't have to worry about the Other Guy, he'd at least play with the thought of pursuing her. But his condition along with her age made it almost seem impossible. She deserved someone far younger than him, but there was no room for wishful thinking. Bruce exited out of Emily's profile to examine Doctor Selvig's notes on the Tesseract. His heart, though, wasn't in it at the moment. It was best for him, and for her, if he just kept his distance. But Bruce wasn't so sure if he could even manage that.

* * *

Emily stalked down the halls with a vengeance; her arms were scorched black as he clutched her book angrily to her chest. Her clothes had burn holes in them and the tip of her braid was singed and smoking, the smell of burnt hair hung in the air around her. Another failure, she should have known by now that's what it would have ended up like. She was completely hopeless, grumbling to herself she climbed the stairs to the upper levels somewhat dreading about going through R&D. She knew Bruce was in there somewhere and she didn't want him to see her like this. Not that she _cared_ if he saw. It wasn't as if she was consciously trying to appear pretty to the ruggedly handsome doctor. Of course she wasn't _that_ superficial. So lost in her thoughts she barely registered walking past a sliding door when it suddenly hissed open and familiar voice called out,

"Emily?" The brandy haired woman stopped and turned to see Bruce walking out of the lab with his face pulled into a tight mask of concern. He eyed her with his wire rimmed glasses sitting easily on is nose until finally his gazed settled on her hands and arms. He frowned a bit, his brows knitting together, "Are you ok?" He didn't have to ask, he could already see she wasn't. But that didn't stop her from putting on a cheery smile,

"Yeah, of course,"

He didn't believe her, made obvious when he shook his head and reached out to take her by the upper arm. He led her into his workspace and guided her towards one of the nearby lab tables. At the head of the room he seemed to be working on an incredible looking device. Bruce pointed to the nearby table,

"Sit." He ordered sternly.

"But-"

"Sit." His tone left no room for argument; she hopped onto the lab table without another complaint and watched as he clattered about the room. Finally, from one of the cupboards, he pulled out a first aid kit and opened it up. She watched in amazement as he silently worked, his mouth was set into a focused frown as he washed her arms down to show decent sized burns. Bruce shook his head in disbelief as he opened a large jar of Burn Ointment and coated her hands and arms with it. Lastly he took a large roll of gauze and tightly wrapped it around her wounds. He looked at his work proudly then proceeded to throw away his garbage and wash his hands.

"You didn't have to, you know." She muttered as she worked her hands wrapped in the bandages. Bruce just gave her a scolding look as he dried off his hands,

"What are you doing down there that not only causes an explosion I can feel all the way up here, but makes you walk away looking like you just dove straight into an open flame?"

Emily giggled, he was cute when he was upset, but apparently he didn't find it funny because he frowned at her even more. With a sigh she put a hand on her book which she had put down so Bruce could patch up her arms.

"I was practicing."

"And what would that be exactly?"

"An expansion incantation on a tiny ball of fire." She explained simply, when she got a confused look she smiled, "I'm supposed to take a little flame and make it grow while trying to keep the temperature the same." She gave a heavy-hearted sigh as she looked down at her wounded hands. "It's not going all that well."

"Maybe you're just doing it wrong?" offered Bruce, he removed his glasses and leaned on the table next to her. The height difference between the two caused him to slightly look up at her; she gave a sardonic scoff and looked away from him,

"But I've done everything to books says."

"You're supposed to keep the temperature the same right?" Emily nodded, "Well maybe you're supposed to keep the temperature the same relative to the size of the fire. Fire needs energy to burn; if it grows too big it runs out of the fuel it needs to keep burning. That's why the bigger the flame, the hotter it is. I'm guessing your fire likes to go supernova on you, which would explain why you look like a burn hazard." Emily was just listening to him now, everything that he was saying made so much sense she was hitting herself in the head for not figuring it out earlier.

"Try it now." Her gaze snapped to him, stunned at what he just said. She almost didn't believe him when he grinned at her and pointed towards the middle of the room, "Try it."

"You're sure? I mean I could blow this place up and-" Bruce's hand rested on her arm. She looked at his face and his dreamy brown eyes held hers,

"I trust you."

A newfound courage roared inside at those words, determined she nodded and grabbed her book. She flipped it open and shoved it in his arms for him to hold out to her. With a deep breath she closed her eyes and held out her hands, focusing all of her energy into her palms,

"Ignire…" she forcefully spoke and a tiny flame burst into life, hanging easily in midair. Another deep breathe and she focused on her fire determined not to screw it up. She tried to force her control on it, causing it to flicker wildly, Bruce's voice cut through her concentration,

"No, no, guide it, don't force it."

Swallowing she loosened her hold over it and it instantly settled, content to slide its pulsating energy through Emily's will. Emily smiled slightly as she took another deep breath and began focusing her power again to begin the Expansion spell.

"Augeo…" she opened her eyes to see the blue bubble encircle her incantation, using her hands she made an expanding motion and watched as the tiny fire grew slightly bigger. She remembered Bruce's words about keep the temperature the same relative to the size of the fire, what she was feeling from it now felt natural. Closely she watched it as she made the motion again and it became the size of a fireball that was easily able to be fit into her hand. She grinned in triumph as she uttered one last spell,

"Signaverus."

A blue sheen swept over the bubble, locking it in place. Emily carefully put down her arms and cautiously stepped forward to take her new creation into her hands. Happiness, unbridled joy coursed through her veins at her success. She squealed in delight as she danced around a bit, her prize still in her grasp. She turned to face Bruce, who had put down her Mantra Incantus and had returned to working on his machine with his dashingly cute glasses back on, he was smiling at her with pride in his eyes. Overjoyed she set down her prize and ran around the table to jump into his arms. She wrapped her hands around his neck and gave him the biggest hug she could muster. Awkwardly his arms wrapped around her waist as he shyly returned the gesture.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you," she whispered happily and she turned to place a kiss on his cheek. Red swept over his face as she pulled away; suddenly she realized what she had done. Mortified she watched as Bruce cleared his throat, looking anywhere but her. He pulled away from her and turned to say something when a commotion outside caught their attention. Curiously they both looked out the window to see heavily armed guards walk past with a tall male with slicked back clack hair. Emily gasped,

"That's him." As if he heard her the man turned his head to look in. Bruce swallowed as a grin spread across the man's face, almost mocking him. His gaze then turned to Emily; the jeering was gone replaced with a cold stare. Calculating almost, it caused Emily to start shivering as fear ran down her spine. Suddenly Bruce placed an arm on her chest and pushed her behind him, effectively blocking her from view. His face was impassive as he watched the man disappear from sight. When he was gone, tiredly he removed his glasses to rub the bridge of his nose.

Not a minute afterwards the glass door opened to reveal Natasha Romanoff, "Doctor, Director Fury would like you to come down to the bridge." He nodded silently and swept past Emily to leave the room, like he was in a hurry to be out of there. Natasha looked at Emily, "You too Em." This was a first, she was never allowed to now all the good stuff, but Emily wasn't about to argue and quickly she followed after Bruce. But first, she needed a change of clothes.

* * *

_Yay next chapter. Thanks for all the reviews, and let me tell you it is hard to keep Bruce in character since I'm not a real sciency sort of person. But it's a challenge I'm looking forward to, Tony won't be any better because I'm not all usually there with the sarcasm. Anyway, I'd be grateful if you could give me some constructive criticism please. I'm currently working on the next chapter and hopefully I can get it out soon._

_PathlessSpore_

_UPDATE: Grammar Errors have been fixed_


	5. Fatal Flaw

Trust in Me  
Avengers Fanfic  
Bruce Banner/ OC  
Chapter 4  
Fatal Flaw

_Try to tell you "No" but my body keeps on telling you "Yes"  
Try to tell you "stop" but your lipstick got me so out of breath  
I'll be waking up in the morning probably hating myself  
I'll be waking up feeling satisfied but guilty as hell_

_One more time-Maroon 5_

* * *

Emily, Bruce, Captain Rogers, and Natasha were all around the large table in the bridge looking down at the video feed coming from the prison cell room. She was sitting next to Steve, who looked no worse for wear, while Bruce lingered behind her with his arms crossed, emotionless. They were joined by a newcomer; he was a tall, broad, and well-muscled male with blonde hair and blue eyes. He was facing away from the group, staring out the windows as he listened to Fury interrogate Loki.

"In case it's unclear," the god of mischief followed the director's movements as his voice called out from somewhere off-screen. The black-haired male never lost the smug look on his face as he sauntered over to the edge of his prison, "If you so much as scratch that glass," a loud mechanical whirring sound came through the audio and Emily could hear the roar of the wind. She paled as she realized that the cell was rigged to fall. The demigod looked down at the endless sky below knowing full well retaliation would mean death, "It's 30,000 feet straight down in a steel trap." Called Fury above the howling air, "You get how that works?" The Director closed the hatch leaving behind only eerie quiet, "Ant, boot."

Loki chuckled as he stepped back into the middle of the cell, "It's an impressive cage," he complimented while looking all about, "Not, built, I think, for me." Emily swallowed at the tense moment.

"Built for something a lot stronger than you." Replied Nick quietly, Loki merely smirked,

"Oh, I've heard," his head snapped to the camera that was watching him. He knew they were all there, watching his every move, "The mindless beast, makes play he's still a man." The prod at Bruce made Emily glance back at him. His brown eyes met her gaze for a second before returning to the screen. "How desperate are you," asked Loki jeeringly, "to call upon such lost creatures to defend you?"

"How desperate am I?" Fury's tone was low and dangerous, "You threaten my world with war, you steal a force you can't hope to control," the Director's voice was gradually rising with each reason he ticked off his list, "You talk about peace and kill because it's fun." There was a slight pause, "You have made me _very _desperate. You might not be glad that you did."

If Fury's threat bothered Loki he didn't show it, "Ooh, it burns you to have come so close," he taunted, "To have the Tesseract, to have power, _unlimited_ power. And for what?" he turned to the camera again, addressing all that were watching, "A warm light for all mankind to share. And then to be reminded of what real power is." Loki turned back to Nick, almost waiting for his retort as the silence between the two stretched out. Finally a light scoff came through the audio feed,

"Well, let me know if "Real Power" wants a magazine or something." The Director's footsteps faded away as the god turned back to the camera again, walking forward slowly, staring at it until it made Emily feel like his eyes were burning into her. The video then cut to black while a deathly stillness ensued.

"He really grows on ya, doesn't he?" asked Bruce from behind, trying to make light of the situation as he tried to hide is irritation and discomfort behind an amusing tone.

"Loki's gonna drag this out," concluded Steve, he looked up at the tall blonde haired male, "So, Thor, what's his play?"

"He as an army called the Chitauri," Explained the demigod, his deep baritone voice rumbling. Emily had read his profile while she had snooped around on a S.H.I.E.L.D Network, the idea of him coming from another planet didn't really surprise her all that much. She wasn't supposed to have Magick powers, but everyone could see how well that worked out. "They're not of Asgard, nor any world known." Thor strode up to the table, "He means to lead them against your people. They will win him the Earth in return, I suspect, for the Tesseract."

"An army from outer space?" Steve seemed to find the idea far beyond his belief, but he didn't argue with it.

"So he's building another portal," deduced Bruce, "that's what he needs Erik Selvig for."

"Selvig?" Thor was suddenly concerned,

"He's an Astrophysicist." explained the doctor,

"He's a friend." Retorted the blonde giant,

Natasha sighed, "Loki has him under some kind of spell, along with one of ours." She looked away very troubled,

"I wanna know why Loki let us take him," Interrupted Captain Rogers, "He's not leading an army from here."

"I don't think we should be focusing on Loki," Bruce cut in, sounding as tired as he looked, "That guys brain is a bag full of cats, you can smell crazy on him."

"Have care how you speak," grumbled Thor, he stepped forward threateningly, staring down Bruce, "Loki is beyond reason, but he is of Asgard. And he is my brother.

"He killed eighty people in two days." Natasha retorted dryly while she gave Thor a cold glower. The demigod grimaced,

"He's adopted?"

Bruce shook his head, "I think it's about the mechanics. Iridium."

Emily furrowed her brows and looked up, "What's that and what's it for?"

"An excellent question!" A new voice called out from the nearby door, all heads turned to watch a tall good-looking man stride in with agent Coulson. Emily immediately recognized the snarky visage of Tony Stark, having met him a couple of years before. The Billionaire turned to Phil, "I'm just saying, pick a weekend. I'll fly you out to Portland." The agent nodded and went off to stand to the side, "Keep love alive."

As the agent stepped aside Stark returned his attention to Emily, "Iridium is the second densest, most resistant metal on the planet, and is commonly found in meteorites. And in answer to your second question, it's a stabilizing agent," he explained, "Which means the portal won't collapse on itself like it did at S.H.I.E.L.D." The girl shifted uncomfortably in her seat as Tony scrutinized her; she hoped he didn't recognize her. She didn't want anyone knowing who she was, it'd be a nightmare. Thor suddenly caught his interest,

"No hard feelings, Point break," he said passively as he breezed past, slapping him on the arm, "You've got a mean swing." He continued onwards to the Helm of the airship where Fury usually stood, continuing on with his explanation, "Also, it means the portal can open as wide and stay open as long as Loki wants." Maria Hill rolled her eyes as Stark looked out onto the crew, "raise the mizzenmast, jib the topsails." Several agents looked at him funny while Emily tried to turn her snort of laughter into a cough. Tony craned his head to her and winked, suddenly he pointed dramatically to his right, "That man is playing Galaga!" he called out causing heads to turn again, "He thought we wouldn't notice, but we did."

Emily could see Tony was far from done with his antics as he placed a hand over his left eye, "How does Fury even see these?" he asked clearly perplexed,

"He turns," Maria replied dryly,

"Sounds exhausting," muttered Tony as he went ahead and started playing around on the computers, "the rest of the raw materials, Agent Barton can get his hands on pretty easily," He went them all, one by one, making sure to touch all the screens, "The only major component he still needs is a power source of high-energy density." After he was done making a nuisance of himself Stark turned innocently to the group, though Emily figured he had done something far from it, "Something to kick start the cube."

"When did you become an expert in Thermonuclear Astrophysics?" Maria's sarcasm was not lost on Tony as he calmly replied with,

"Last night," he looked at everyone, "The packet, Selvig's notes, the extraction theory papers?" When there was nothing Tony had the nerve to look mystified at the rest of them, "Am I the only one who did the reading?" He sounded exasperated as Steve huffed,

"Does Loki need any particular kind of power source?"

Bruce was the one to answer him, "He'd have to heat the cube to 120-million Kelvin just to break through the Coulomb barrier," the doctor was pacing back and forth slowly,

"Unless," injected Stark, "Selvig has figured out a way to stabilize the quantum tunneling effect." He started off around the table towards Bruce who looked obviously impressed,

"Well, if he could do that, he could achieve heavy ion fusion at any reactor on the planet."

"Finally, someone who speaks English." Tony and Bruce came face to face as Steve leaned over to Emily,

"Is that what just happened?" he muttered while she giggled and shrugged her shoulders, turning to watch the two scientist shake hands.

"It's good to meet you Doctor Banner; your work on antielectron collisions is unparalleled. And I'm a huge fan of the way you lose control and turn into an enormous green rage-monster."

Bruce fought for words for two seconds before coming up with a very awkward, "Thanks."

Tony then turned to Emily, "And you," he pointed to her and strode up, "impressive job in Venice, an entire street gone within seconds, fantastic." Emily glowered at him, not appreciating the jab one bit. She took sudden interest in the table as the genius studied her more, "Branson?" he muttered underneath his breath, "I know that name. Are you related to the New York Branson's?"

She chuckled wryly, "Do you think I would honestly be here if I was related to an Old Money family, Mr. Stark?"

There was an apprehensive quiet as everyone watched the exchange. He knew, she could see it. She hoped he had enough respect for her privacy to keep it to himself. Footsteps caught their attention and everyone looked to see Nick Fury stride in. He looked between Stark and Emily but chose to disregard their discussion and addressed the scientist, "I see you and Dr. Banner have already met, he is only here to track the cube. I was hoping you might join him."

"I would start with that stick of his," Steve leaned back in his chair, "It may be magickal but it works an awful lot like a HYDRA weapon."

"I don't know about that, but it is powered by the cube. And I'd like to know how Loki used it to turn to of the sharpest men I know into his own personal flying monkeys." Snapped Nick, Thor looked at him confused,

"monkeys? I don't Under-"

"I do!" Steve swallowed a bit, looking sheepish and proud at the same time, "I understood that reference." Emily couldn't help feeling a bit of pity for him.

"Shall we play, Doctor?" asked Tony suddenly, Bruce indicated to the door,

"This way, sir." He started off only to realize Stark had yet to follow as he was too busy poking Emily in the head. She batted away his hand with a scowl,

"Care to join us, Ms. Branson?" This was an opportunity to get her alone, to interrogate her and she wasn't about to give him that chance. She shook her head vigorously,

"No, you boys go have fun, science is not my forte."

Emily yelped out in sudden surprise as Tony grabbed her by the arm and pushed her toward the door, "Then, allow the good doctor and me to give you an Edumication." He retorted cheekily. She tried to push past him only to give a high-pitched squeal as Tony caught her again, lifted her up, and began carrying her around like a large sack of flour. He then turned to Bruce, giving him an eyeful, and shooed him on,

"Lead on my good man."

* * *

Bruce listened to Emily grumble all the way back to his Lab in R&D. He was still trying to get the image of her toned butt out of his mind, as nice as it was, and he was pretty damn sure Tony had done it on purpose. They arrived at his Lab to find that an Agent had already dropped off Loki's scepter as it was now resting on the table. As the sliding door hissed shut Bruce looked behind him just in time to catch Stark unceremoniously squeeze her butt. She gave out a cry of astonishment and retaliated by nailing him upside the head. She then proceeded to jab her knee into Stark's stomach, hard. Bruce flinched as Tony doubled over with a grunt, loosening his hold over Emily long enough for her to break free. The windows began to rattle as she backed away, smoothing out her shirt while breathing heavily, in an effort to keep her temper in check.

She seemed to be failing because the next thing Bruce knew was that his hands were resting on her shoulders, her eyes snapped up to meet his,

"It's alright." He comforted and eventually the windows stopped leaving only the hum of the machinery. She nodded and slipped out of his grasp to find a seat on one of the lab tables, Tony clapped his hands and shed his jacket,

"Shall we?"

Bruce smirked, "Why not?"

It took an hour to set up all the right equipment, Tony worked on setting up a network to scan the globe for the same Gamma wavelength Bruce was getting from the Scepter.

"The gamma readings are definitely consistent with Selvig's reports on the Tesseract, but it's gonna take weeks to process." Commented Bruce, Tony merely looked amused as he played around with the machine he was working on,

"If we bypass their mainframe, and direct route to the Homer cluster, we can clock this at about 600 teraflops." Bruce scoffed,

"And all I packed was a toothbrush."

Tony chuckled, "You know you should come by Stark Tower sometime," he said as he walked across the room, as he passed by Emily he patted her on the knee, "Hope you're not mad at me?" She gave him an irritated smirk but couldn't hide the amusement in her eyes. She rolled them and leaned back on her hands while Tony continued on, "Top ten floors, all R&D. You'll love it, its candy land." assured the Billionaire as he picked up a thin metal object, studying it in his hands. Bruce gave him a ghost of a smile,

"Thanks, but the last time I was in New York, I kind of broke….Harlem." He studied something on the screen barely noticing how Tony was carefully moving around him,

"Well I promise a stress free environment," Tony was studying him; Bruce could feel his eyes on the back of his neck as he moved around to the other side of him, "No tension, no surprises." Suddenly an electric discharge reached his ears and too late he realized what Stark had in his hands. A sharp jolt went up his side as the thin metal object was pressed into him.

"Ow!" He grunted as he spun to face Stark as an indignant "Hey!" followed straight after. Tony leaned forward to study his eyes; Bruce was so stunned he couldn't stop the smile from covering his face in disbelief,

"Nothing?" the Billionaire seemed impressed as Steve Rogers stalked up to the table and looked between the two,

"Are you nuts?" he asked, Stark barely gave him a side glance,

"Jury's out." He replied while Bruce returned to his work, he noticed that Emily was trying to stifle a full-blown laugh in front of the Captain.

"You really have a lid on it, haven't you? What's your secret? Mellow Jazz, bongo drums, huge bag of weed?" Bruce looked up at Emily who now had her hands covering her mouth, tears streaming out of her eyes. She was shaking with the effort to control herself.

"Is everything a joke to you?"

Tony didn't even bother to look fazed, "Funny things are." He retorted, Steve did not look amused,

"Threatening the safety of everyone on this ship isn't funny," he turned to Bruce who glanced up at him, "No offense, doc." A sudden snort escaped Emily as she wiped away her tears,

"Captain, I don't think Bruce would have come aboard if he couldn't handle pointy things." She looked deliberately at Stark, who dropped his jaw,

"Did you just call me a prick?" He asked disbelieving while he was laughing. She just grinned at him; Steve looked a little lost but chose to disregard it as Tony shook his head and turned back to Bruce. He pointed the thin metal cattle prod at him,

"You are tip-toeing big man," he scolded, "You need to strut."

"And _you_ need to focus on the problem, Mr. Stark." Retorted Captain Rogers, he didn't look all that thrilled. Tony gave him a bemused stare as he picked up a small tinfoil bag,

"You think I'm not?" Stark turned to Captain Rogers, "Why did Fury call us in, why now? Why not before? What isn't he telling us" Bruce had to admit it was a good question, everything that he had been told hadn't added up so far. Though he wasn't going to say that out loud; whatever the director was up to had nothing to do with him. Hopefully. "I can't do the equation unless I have all the variables."

Steve took a moment before replying, "You think Fury is hiding something?"

"Captain," Emily was giving him a deeply troubled stare, "He's a spy, even I know better than to give him information that can be used against me." Tony pointed a finger approvingly at her,

"He's _the _spy, captain. His secrets have secrets." He took a handful of whatever was in the bag and popped it into his mouth, he then pointed to Bruce, which was something he had hoped he wouldn't,

"It's bugging him too," pointed out Tony who turned to him, "Isn't it?"

"uh," The doctor didn't want this attention, he wanted nothing to do with what Fury was up to. The less involved he was, the better, nothing good could ever come out of this, "I just wanna finish my work here, and…"

"Doctor?" prompted Steve, and Bruce gave a heavy sigh and removed his glasses; he was trying to put his suspicion into words,

"A warm light for all mankind…" he started out, "Loki's jab at Fury about the cube."

"I heard it."

Bruce indicated to Tony, "I think that it was meant for you." In reply the genius held out his goody bag and he gratefully took a handful, "Even if Barton didn't tell Loki about the tower, it was still all over the news."

"The Stark Tower?" inquired Emily; she was confused as Steve smirked,

"That big, ugly," he hesitated at his poor choice of words while Tony gave him a not so happy look, "building in New York?"

"It's powered by an Arc Reactor," Explained Bruce, "A self-sustaining energy source. That building will run itself, for what, about a year?"

Stark shrugged as he popped another handful of his snacks in his mouth, "It's just a prototype." He looked a little displeased about it but he turned back to Rogers,

"I'm kind of the only name in clean energy right now," he said by way of explanation, "That's what he's getting at."

"So why didn't S.H.I.E.L.D bring you in on the Tesseract project?" Emily looked lost as she hopped down from her table and joined the three of them,

"Exactly," offered the Doctor, "What are they doing in the energy business in the first place?"

"I should probably look into that once my decryption program finishes breaking into S.H.I.E.L.D.'s secure files." Commented Tony casually, he brought out a phone as he sauntered to the other side of the table. Steve looked outraged,

"I'm sorry, did you say-" he looked like he was getting ready to lay into the billionaire but was cut off,

"JARVIS has been running it since I hit the bridge," he continued on like he hadn't heard the Captain, "In a few hours, I'll know every dirty secret S.H.I.E.L.D has ever tried to hide." Bruce didn't miss the proud way Tony looked now, "Blueberry?" He offered one out to Emily, who waved a hand,

"No, I'm allergic."

"Shame…" muttered Tony, who then turned to Rogers, "What about you? Blueberry?" he asked eagerly, Steve wasn't amused

"Yet, you're confused on why they didn't want you around."

The Genius stuck out his chin proudly, "An intelligence organization that _fears _intelligence, historically not awesome."

"I think Loki is trying to wind us up," said Rogers dryly, "This is a man who means to start a war and if we don't stay focused, he'll succeed. We have orders," he said forcefully, "We should follow them." Tony scoffed and smirked,

"Yeah, following's not really my style."

Steve snorted sarcastically, "And you're all about style, aren't you?"

"Which of the people in this room is A) wearing a Spangly outfit and B) not of any use?" Stark retorted smartly.

"Steve," Bruce cut in before the Captain could reach over and deck him, "tell me none of this smells a little funky to you."

The legendary Captain looked torn between the two. Bruce could see that he was having the same suspicions as everyone else but his military training and loyalty to the government he used to know was the only thing keeping him from acting on all of it. Finally he huffed,

"Just find the cube." And he brushed past Tony and stalked out the door. The billionaire playboy watched the door slide shut,

"That's the guy my dad never shut up about?" he scoffed as he turned to fiddle on one of the hanging computers nearby, "I'm wondering if they shouldn't have kept him on ice." Emily gave an irritated gasp,

"The man comes from entirely different time, Stark," she said hotly, her eyes were narrowed as she scolded him, "Have a little respect."

"Hush you," Tony reached over and poked her in the head again, she gave a growl and batted him away. Bruce smirked at their antics as he returned to his work,

"The guys not wrong about Loki," he added, "he does have the jump on us."

"No," said Tony defiantly, "what he has is an ACME Dynamite kit, it's going to blow up in his face and I'm going to be there when it does."

"Yeah," muttered the doctor, "And I'll read all about it." He flicked over a status report for Tony to look at, but the billionaire just gave him a bemused look,

"Or, you'll be suiting up with the rest of us."

"Bruce chuckled at the thought, "I don't get a suit of armor," he said as he played with a few buttons on the screen, "I'm exposed, like a nerve. It's a nightmare."

"You know, I've got a cluster of shrapnel trying every second to crawl its way into my heart," shot back Tony, "This," he tapped on the mini Arc reactor in his chest, "Stops it. This little circle of light is a part of me now," he sauntered over to Bruce, "not just armor. It's a terrible privilege" he confided,

Bruce couldn't help feeling slightly annoyed, "But you can control it."

"Because I learned how." Countered Tony

"It's different." He muttered, trying to hide behind his work. He didn't want to go into this; no one could ever understand what it felt like fearing your own self. Having to keep in check, every millisecond of the day, never knowing if someone's next actions could make him snap. But Tony wasn't having any of it and he swiped aside all of his work,

"Hey," he looked him in the eye, "I read all about your accident, that much Gamma exposure _should_ have killed you."

"So you're saying the Hulk…" he stopped short and swallowed, he hated referring to his other self by the name everyone had given him, "The Other Guy, saved my life." He let that sink in while trying to ignore the irony of it all, "That's nice, a nice sentiment. Saved it for what?"

It was quiet, Tony had no clear answer, "I guess we'll find out." Was all he said, he walked back to his station as Bruce scoffed,

"You might not enjoy that."

"And you just might." He retorted cheekily. Tony was far from done however because he turned his gaze to Emily, who had been content to let the two have their moment. Bruce would be lying if he said he didn't mind the way Stark was staring at her. He was too much in control of himself to let it show however. He didn't enjoy the way the Scientist seemed to study her, almost like he recognized her but didn't want to say anything,

"What about you?" asked Tony suddenly; Emily gave him an innocent stare, "What is your great fatal flaw?" She regarded him for a second before she patted the book on the table next to her,

"My entire life depends on this." She said vaguely, Tony just gave her a sarcastic smirk,

"Don't be over dramatic." She shook her head and grabbed her Manta Incantus; she set it in front of Tony and opened the cover. Curious, Bruce stopped what he was doing and wandered over. There in the center of the black leather cover was a tear, like someone had taken a knife and cut the book. She then took her shirt and lifted up the left side. On her skin was the same cut, a white, thin scar running down her body.

"Whatever happens to this book happens to me," she explained sadly as she dropped her shirt, "If it's destroyed it will kill me too. But it cannot harm itself, which is why when I blow myself up the book is never damaged." She looked down at the table, "I wish I had never found this thing," she muttered hatefully, "It's given me nothing but trouble."

"As cheesy as it sounds," butt in Stark, he closed the cover, "Everything happens for a reason; you still have yet to find yours."

She seemed to take that in, but elected to say nothing. Eventually she put on a smile and turned to Bruce, "You work too hard," she scolded lightly, "Come on, we'll go down to the mess hall, and despite popular belief the ladies down there making some pretty good hot chocolate." She reached out and took his hand and spun him around to lead him out the door. No, no, no, he couldn't, that meant being alone with her. He dug in his heels and stopped her; confused she looked back at him,

"No." he slipped out of her hold, "I can't."

She wasn't going to take no for answer, "Don't be like that," she reached out again,

"Emily!" he snapped loudly, she jumped and stumbled back a few steps, "I have work to do!" He watched the hurt reach her eyes in a matter of seconds. When it did he felt instantly guilty. Suddenly her expression was impassive, her eyes narrowed, her face almost feral,

"Of course," she sniffed as she turned away from him, "Forgive me for wasting your time, Doctor Banner." She countered coldly. With a huff she walked out the door leaving Bruce in stunned silence.

"Smooth move, Casanova." He almost jumped, having forgotten that Tony was there. He looked over to see the playboy smirk at him wryly,

"I don't know what you're talking about." He muttered defensively, trying to return to his work. He couldn't believe he had jumped Emily like that; he hadn't meant to hurt her feelings. He felt like an ass, she was just a girl still, she could have no idea what the hell she did to him and he had taken out his frustration on her.

"So you're saying you're not interested in her," Bruce caught the eagerness in his voice. The doctor picked up a pencil to write something down, trying to ignore Stark, "Because that's good. Don't get me wrong, I love Pepper to death, but little Miss Emily." Bruce wasn't liking where this was going, "Now she's a got a pair I could just stick my face into-"

SNAP!

Bruce looked down in shock at the remains of the pencil in his hand; he hadn't even recognized he was gripping it all that hard. Suddenly he realized he had given Tony exactly what he wanted because when he looked up the playboy had a smug look on his face. He walked up behind him,

"You like her." He stated next to his ear. Bruce didn't want to give him the satisfaction of an answer but the genius wasn't about to let it go, "Admit it," he teased, "You like her."

"She's too young…" he muttered under his breath, Tony just scoffed,

"So?"

Bruce's look of shock must have been funny because Stark started to laugh, "So, she's too young and if you haven't noticed I'm not the greatest guy to be around."

"She makes you happy." Shot back the playboy, "She understands you, and she makes you feel normal." Now he was just guessing but Bruce wanted to hear nothing of it, he turned to go back to his work desperately. Out of nowhere he was yanked by the arm and pushed out the sliding glass door, he spun on his heel to face Stark, "I've had it with you young man," he scolded playfully, "you're grounded, which means you're not allowed back in here until you find your girlfriend and apologize to her."

"She's not my girlfriend!" cried Bruce indignantly,

"Don't you give me that tone." Tony stepped back and closed the door and locked it, leaving Bruce speechless on the other side. They initiated a staring contest until Tony pointed off down the hall and then turned and proceeded to pay no attention to him. With an irritated huff Bruce took off, this place was huge and he had no idea where Emily had run off to.

* * *

_I don't like the ending all the much but hey it works; I'll edit and post it later. Anyway, SCIENCE BROS! Tell me what you think and I'll see you next update._

_PathlessSpore_

_UPDATE: fixed a few errors and changed some sentences around._


	6. Burdened

Trust in Me  
Avengers Fanfic  
Bruce Banner/OC  
Chapter 5  
Burdened

_Though a thousand words have never been spoken  
they'll fly to you crossing over the time and distance  
holding you suspended on silver wings_

_1000 words- Sweetbox_

* * *

After a half an hour of searching the Research and Development levels Bruce decided it was best to start from the top and work his way down. He stepped out onto the flight deck, realizing it was too cold out in the dead of night for her to even be there. There was no trace of her on the bridge and he was about to give up when he finished searching the Stateroom level. The doctor frowned, where was she? She just couldn't disappear. He was so lost in his thoughts he jumped mile when a familiar voice came from right behind him,

"Did you lose something, Doctor?"

Bruce spun to face Natasha Romanoff, who was giving him an expression between curiosity and amusement. The doctor chuckled nervously,

"Yeah, Emily."

The red-haired spy gave him a knowing smile and shrugged, "Well that depends, you can usually find her in her room," she pointed off down towards the end of the hall, "third on left. Or, if you've upset her, you can find her in the music room." Oh yeah, he had definitely upset her but he couldn't help giving Natasha a strange look at the thought of a high-tech military helicarrier having a music room. The spy nodded,

"Emily asked Fury to put one in, she gets bored easily and it helps her bide her time while she isn't grumbling or practicing her Magick."

"Where exactly is the music room?"

"Lowest floor, all the way down at the end of the hall, last door on your right." Instructed Agent Romanoff, she pointed to a nearby set of stairs, "Those will take you all the way down." Bruce thanked the spy and without another word took off down the set of steps. When he reached the bottom he came out to a silver and black hallway that seemed to stretch on for a while, following the directions given to him he finally came to the last door on the right. From behind it he could hear the faint echo of an instrument playing. Cautiously he slid it open and slipped in.

The room was fairly big, enough for a Piano to fit in along with a harp, and a large stereo. Stacks of CD's were spread out on the floor but none of them seemed were in use. The room was surprisingly bright, compared to the rest of the helicarrier; the walls were a gold hue reflecting of the hardwood floor. Whoever had built the room had taken the time to make it look like a mini ballroom, complete with a small chandelier. In the center of the room was the piano, and sitting at it, fingers gracefully dancing across the keys, was Emily. Her back was to him as she carefully played out the song, it was slow but sweet at the same time. Some of the notes were soft but as she continued on it got louder until she was making a beautiful crescendo of music. Eventually the temp slowed until she let the last note slowly fade into the air, she laid her hands in her lap and sighed.

"It's a beautiful song," commented Bruce from the door, she turned halfway in her seat, startled to find him there. She eyed him with apprehension as he walked closer; he held out his hands in front of him, "What's it called?" She regarded him before turning back to her piano,

"1000 Words," she replied softly, "I heard it from a video game my cousin was playing and I loved it, so I learned to play it on the piano."

It was quiet between the two for a moment as she waited for him to make his next move, "Emily," he muttered, she didn't look at him instead opting to stare at her hands, "I didn't mean to yell at you, I'm sorry."

"Don't be," she said as she looked up, why her eyes had to hold so much understanding was still a mystery to him, "I was be annoying, I realize that now. You were right, you have work to do. I guess…" she trailed off; concerned Bruce sat on the bench next to her,

"What?"

"It's just that…" she looked embarrassed, "Before I met you, before I even found the book, I was always the different one, to everyone. But especially to my family. My father pretended I never existed, I was dirt on his shoe for all he cared, and my mother was pretty much the same way. My sister hated me and soaked up all the attention from my parents leaving me to rot in the corner."

Bruce sat and listened to her, he didn't want to feel pity, he was sure she didn't want it. To live in the shadow of her older sister, to have parents who ignored her, he couldn't imagine what that must have been like for her,

"I tried so hard, for so many years, to impress them. That's why I started playing music. For once in my life I wanted them to look at me and tell me "Good Job Emily." But year after year they pushed me even farther away." Emily sighed as she looked up at him, "Promise me something?"

"Anything."

"You have to promise to never repeat what I'm about to tell you," she said seriously, he nodded but she shook her head vigorously, "No I mean it, if I find out you told, you're as good as dead." She warned and Bruce had no doubt she'd make good on her threat. It took a minute for her to work up her courage, finally she sighed heavily,

"I am the shame of my family for a mistake my Mother had made before I was born." She said and Bruce's heart stopped. The color drained from his face as he instantly realized what she was getting at, hell he didn't even need to be a genius to figure it out,

"Oh Emily." He whispered, she closed her eyes to fight back her tears. Without thinking he reached out and pulled her into his arms, holding her close as she shook with silent sobs. To have to carry a burden like that for so long, without telling anyone, must have been absolute torture. To try and impress a family who blamed her for something that wasn't her fault. No, he couldn't even begin to imagine what that must have been like for her. He didn't know how long time had passed; minutes, hours? He didn't care; all that he knew was Emily needed comfort. Eventually her shaking stopped; finally a muffled voice emerged from his chest,

"You're the first friend I've ever had." She confided softly and that made him smile, he absently placed a kiss on her head. They spent a long time in silence until finally Emily pulled away from him. She brushed away the remnants of her tears, looking slightly relieved to have finally gotten rid of one of the greatest problems of her life. Bruce then turned around on the bench so that he was facing the Piano.

"Teach me how to play." He said and Emily gave him a smirk,

"Don't you have work to do?" She asked wryly, Bruce laughed,

"Um yeah, I'm grounded." He received a confused glance for that one, "Tony kicked me out for snapping at you. So unless you want to explain why you've been crying, teach me how to play."

"Good point." Chuckled Emily and she straightened her back and started to instruct him about the different keys. As she talked Bruce gave her one last glance, she looked better. A lot better. And that made him much happier.

* * *

_So that chapter pretty much wrote itself out, short but it's a filler so anyway. I'm stretching out the days a bit, giving Bruce and Em an extra day or two to bond before the really good stuff happens. Keep an eye out_

_PathlessSpore_

_UPDATED: Fixed grammar errors_


	7. Caged

Trust in Me  
Avengers Fanfic  
Bruce Banner/ OC  
Chapter 6  
Caged

_The secret side of me, I never let you see  
I keep it caged, but I can't control it  
So stay away from me, the beast is ugly  
I feel the rage, and I just can't hold it_

_Monster-Skillet_

* * *

Emily sat with Bruce for a few hours at that piano; she was amazed at how fast he was catching on. He was a quick learner. His expression was determined as he memorized each of the different keys and how they could be played together. When she started him on the easier songs he mastered them swiftly without almost any effort. When it was nearing midnight Bruce remembered he was supposed to be working on finding the Tesseract; he shoved her lightly in the arm, teasingly calling her a bad influence. Before he got up he looked back down at the black and white keys,

"Will you play me a song?"

Emily grinned and nodded, she scooted towards the center of the bench and set her hands on the large instrument, "What do you want to hear?"

He just shrugged, "Surprise me."

She sat in thought for a moment until a song popped in her head. She took a deep breath and started to play the notes softly but swiftly and with a lot of feeling. As her hands danced over the keys the music became a sweet melody of a song that she had heard once on the radio and had always wanted to play on the piano. Without realizing she had begun to sing along with the music,

"The stars lean down to kiss you and I lie awake and miss you. Pour me a heavy dose of atmosphere. Cause I'll doze off safe and soundly, but I'll miss your arms around me. I'd send a postcard to you, dear, cause I wish you were here."

She glanced at Bruce; his eyes were closed as he listened to the combination of the music and her voice, looking completely at ease.

"I'll watch the night turn light blue, but it's not the same without you; because it takes two to whisper quietly. The silence isn't so bad, till I look at my hands and feel sad; cause the spaces between my fingers are right where yours fit perfectly"

"I'll find repose in new ways, though I haven't slept in two days; cause cold nostalgia chills me to the bone. But drenched in vanilla twilight, I'll sit on the front porch all night. Waist deep in thought because when I think of you I don't feel so alone."

"I don't feel so alone. I don't feel so alone. As many times as I blink, I'll think of you tonight." Her fingers played the notes softly and slow before she brought the tempo up and louder,

"When violet eyes get brighter and heavy wings grow lighter, I'll taste the sky and feel alive again. And I'll forget the world that I knew, but I swear I won't forget you. Oh, if my voice could reach back through the past I'd whisper in your ear: 'Oh darling I wish you were here'"

She played the last few soft notes, letting the notes disappear off into the air. It was quite until Bruce's voice broke through the peace,

"Vanilla Twilight by Owl City." Emily chuckled and nodded,

"I heard it, and I just had to learn how to play it."

They shared a momentary laugh before Bruce pushed himself and looked down, "Care to join me back in the lab?" Emily was a little unsure, he had work to do and she didn't want to be a distraction. His expression, however, seemed completely sincere. With a nod she stood up and the pair walked out the door and wandered back to R&D taking their sweet time. When they finally managed their way back the sliding door was still locked. Tony Stark had his back turned to them intently working on a device on a table. Bruce rapped the glass with his knuckles causing the playboy's head to turn. His eyes lightened as he recognized the two and he sauntered over to the lock pad to let them in.

"Did he apologize?" asked Stark sincerely, Emily nodded with the faintest of smiles. The scientist beamed proudly at Bruce, "Good, now that you're done slacking off how about you start pulling your own weight now?" He meant it in all good fun as he swept his arm towards what he was working on. The doctor just gave him a smirk and rolled up his sleeves. Emily sat and watched for a good two hours before fatigue finally settled in. She bid the men good night with a yawn and started off towards her room.

She punched in the pass code in keypad next to her door and with a hissed it opened. It was a decent sized room, built like a studio apartment. She had her bed, a large two person mattress with a T.V. hanging on the wall for the nights when she wanted to watch a movie. Nearby was her dresser with a large mirror behind it, sitting on top was a picture of a well-worn middle-aged woman with long white hair tied in a tight bun. She had her own personal bathroom and a mini kitchen stocked with food and soft drinks for when she didn't feel like leaving her room. Compared to the others who lived here with her Emily had it made.

Drowsily, she undressed and slipped into a pair of sweats and a worn black T-shirt. As she got into her bed she untied her hair from its braid. She ran her fingers through the brandy colored tresses until its full length tumbled down to the floor. Carefully she pulled it onto the bed and laid it out as she crawled under the covers. For several minutes she dozed peacefully until her tired eyes finally shut bringing her to blissful sleep.

When Emily woke the next morning she was surprised to see she had slept in, though being up for so long the night before hadn't helped. She dressed hurriedly and while braiding her unruly hair she ran down to the cafeteria to pick up a quick breakfast. She stuffed an apple into her mouth as she grabbed something for Bruce and Tony to eat; swiftly she sprinted up nearby stairs and skidded to a halt outside the lab. When she walked in two tired men looked up to greet her,

"Did you two stay up all night?!" she asked in disbelief. Bruce chuckled as she tossed him an orange; he pointed a thumb at Tony, who looked like he had the jitters,

"He's on his twelfth cup of coffee."

"I can tell." Emily replied dryly, she handed him an apple which he took silently. Emily turned back to Bruce; he had expertly peeled his breakfast and was back at work, he seemed to be calibrating the strange device on the table. His glasses were perched on his nose as he bit into the orange, "Have you found the Tesseract yet?"

He shook his head, looking slightly irked, "No, I'm fine-tuning the model now so we can have a more accurate location when we pass nearby."

"He's stalling," muttered Tony, he was biting into his apple thoughtfully; "He doesn't want it found just yet."

"Loki?" inquired Emily, the scientist nodded,

"He's drawing this out, waiting for some cue so he can start the Grand Finale." Stark finished his fruit and tossed the core. He rubbed his eyes wearily; Emily gave him a smirk,

"Go to bed Tony," she ordered softly, "Your work will still be here when you get up."

"But I don't wanna…" murmured Tony childishly, she swept forward and gently took him by the arm, leading him out,

"You're not doing yourself any favors by working yourself into the ground. Go to bed."

"Yes, mother." Without another word of complaint he left the room, leaving Bruce and her alone. With a light sigh she turned to the doctor who was still intently fixing his device,

"You too," she said, he tried to hide his grin as he spun around to grab a tool off the table behind him,

"I'm fine."

"No you're not," she said defiantly, she crossed her arms and walked up behind him. She reached up and brought his face around cradling his cheek in her hand. She gazed at him gently, the softest smile playing on her lips. His brown eyes stared at her, "You don't need to run yourself ragged, and it's not healthy." Her fingers drifted from his skin. It took a moment before a worn-out sigh left his nose,

"Alright," he mumbled in defeat, "you win. I'll go to bed." He removed his glasses and let her lead him out as well. Before exiting he made sure to secure the room and shut off the lights. Emily escorted him up all the way to his room, bid him a good night, and skipped off down towards the training room. She was excited to say the least, having finally been able to work out the expansion spell she was now able to move on to the next page. Cassidy was already there when Emily arrived, Mantra Incantus in hand; the room looked as good as new. Proudly she set the book on the podium and opened it to the new page. She studied it carefully; it described a protection spell, a shield of some sort. Frowning she stepped back,

"So," the black-haired Agent looked over her shoulder. Emily knew she couldn't read it, no one could save for the wielder of the book, "What are we doing now?"

"A protection spell."

"So what, you make a shield and I just chuck stuff at you to make sure it works?"

"I guess," she gave Cassidy an irritated glance, "Why are you asking me? I'm new at this." The agent threw her hands up in surrender and stepped away as Emily took another look at her book. As it instructed, she sat down on the floor and began to clear her mind of all thoughts. On her mental screen she envisioned a large metal trash can. One by one all of her worries were tossed in and locked away, leaving behind nothing. When she was done she took a deep breath and slowly let all of her energy encircle her in a protective bubble.

"Contego." She muttered and she felt all her pent-up magick sigh in relief as it solidified.

Suddenly something small and cold hit her in the head; she opened her eyes and twisted to face Cassidy. She had emptied her gun to use the bullets to toss at Emily. The agent grinned, "There was a shield around you." She said innocently, with a cold glower the witch turned back to concentrate. It went on for some hours, she was determined to master the new spell, something so easy a child could do it. For hours she endured being the target of Cassidy's lightly tossed bullets until finally she managed a semi solid buffer. As a test the black-haired woman found a pen in her pockets a chucked it at her. Emily watched with triumph as it bounced off her handiwork, leaving behind only a small indentation.

Victorious the witch let go of her Magick and a definitive pop could be heard as the shield disappeared into thin air. The agent gave her a thumb up and a grin, "Well, that's way better than being blown up." Emily laughed,

"Yes, definitely." Feeling more satisfied with herself the witch collected her book, she hadn't mastered it but the spell was easier than what she had done before. She skipped out the door, realizing that it was well past two in the afternoon and she had yet to eat anything decent. She stopped by the mess hall to sit and eat, as she stuffed down her salad she flipped through her book slowly. A conjuring spell, a Healing spell, Death Spells, Light spells; with each one she passed she realized that they were all divided into different Tiers. She was only in the first tier, but why did her magick seem so much more difficult? With a sigh she snapped the cover shut and disposed of her trash, she stopped by her room to drop off her book, which she hid under her mattress.

After, she was at a loss at what to do. She wondered briefly if Bruce had gotten up to go back to work. She was against knocking on his door, if he was still asleep she didn't want to rudely wake him up. Her best chance was looking in the lab at R&D. Emily wasn't all that surprised to find the lights back on when she strode in, Bruce looked up at her entrance looking slightly refreshed and with a head full of bed hair, which was surprisingly cute on him.

"Feel better?" she asked lightly as joined him, he gave her a smile,

"Yes, thank you." He returned to his project as Emily made herself comfortable on the table, leaning over slightly she watched as his hands twisted and connected wires. His expression was focused on what he was doing, only semi aware of her observation. Eventually he finished up, looking quite satisfied with his effort. Admiring his handiwork she was surprised when he bent down to pick up the end of her braid.

"You should cut it," he commented as he played with the burnt and dead ends. Emily gave an irritated huff,

"I know, but…"

He gave her a curious glance, "But what?"

"You wouldn't understand."

Bruce gave a chuckle and leaned on the table with his elbows, "Try me." He challenged. Emily struggled to put her thoughts into words,

"My hair is a point of personal pride," she started softly, "cutting it off would seem like… like cutting away a part of me." She gave another huff, god that must have sounded so shallow to him. But she had never once contemplated getting a haircut, even for just a trim. She hated it, sure the tips got dirty from dragging on the ground, and it was a pain when it got stepped on, but it didn't feel natural to just shear it off. Her aunt had hair almost longer than hers but she always kept it in a bun or up out-of-the-way. She remembered when she was a little girl staying with her favorite relative, the only one who actually liked her.

She remembered the cold winter nights in woods, inside the cabin by the fireplace. Every night her stern but kind aunt would unbraid her hair and brush out the golden tresses with care. She would praise its suppleness and sheen; run her long fingers through the strands. And as she tied it up and carried her to bed she would always whisper in her ear,

"_Sleep well, Leanaí, may your dreams be sweet."_

Emily sighed as she looked down at her hands; memories of her aunt hurt her. She was staying with her when she had gone into the forest exploring, disregarding her aunt's warnings to never go in alone. She had stumbled upon decrepit and ancient ruins, common in Ireland where her beloved relative resided. It had once been a temple, a pagan ritual site in the past. Emily had been entranced as she passed broken pillars and ancient doorways, her heart raced as she delved deep inside. She felt as if she should know this place, it almost felt like home. Her blood sang with joy as writings covered the wall, an old language that was now dead. In the deepest part of the temple she found a large room, ivy covered the walls and floor. A large hole in the ceiling let light filter in and settle on a large raised altar. Emily remembered climbing the steps, one by one until she crested the top and beheld a simple but thick black book. A black book with the engraving of a large gold weeping willow, the book that would change her life.

"What are you thinking?" Bruce's voice cut through her memory and brought her back to the present, his brown eyes glimmered with concern. She shrugged,

"My aunt, and about the day I found the Incantus."

"You aunt, what is she like?"

Emily smiled widely, "She's…different, I guess that's why I love her so much. She never treated me like I was trash. She's stern too, but kind and thoughtful."

"She's your mother's sister?"

Emily shook her head, "No, I think she's related to my real father, but I never really questioned it. Inside I knew I was a part of her, I knew without a doubt she was my aunt. I never saw her as anything less." She hesitated, "It's hard to explain."

"Like your hair?"

Emily nodded as she ran her fingers over the strands, "Something like that."

Bruce looked at her thoughtfully, "I understand, sort of. But you should still get rid of the dead ends."

She nodded and hopped down from her perch, with a quick search around she found a pair of scissors sitting nearby, smartly she handed them to him. He gave her a stunned stare as she held her hair up,

"Here," She nodded her consent but he seemed tentative to do anything,

"You're sure?"

She gave him a soft, sweet smile, "I trust you."

Gently he took the end judging where he should cut; he finally decided upon a good six to seven inches, taking away the dead hair and stopping it from dragging on the ground. Emily looked away as he began; she heard the scissors working through the brandy strands slowly and carefully until finally she felt her beautiful hair fall away. She looked down sadly as Bruce held the cut strands in his hand; he gingerly took out the hair tie and handed it to her.

Emily unbraided her hair so she could fix it again; she worked a hand through her tresses until it fell smoothly down her back. She gasped as she felt Bruce's hand run through her hair, "It's very beautiful," he murmured as he began parting it into sections, she realized he meant to put it up for her. Easily he began twisting it until it fell into a well done French braid, when he was finished he threw it over her shoulder.

"Thank you." Whispered Emily as she looked back at him, he simply nodded. She gazed softly into his eyes, but she wasn't just trying to see Bruce anymore. Was he in there, The Hulk, looking out at her behind those glimmering orbs? Could he see her as easily as Bruce did? Before she could stop herself she blurted out,

"Does he see everything you do?" She gasped and covered her mouth mortified, "I'm sorry," Bruce's face turned thoughtful, "That was so rude of me." He chuckled at her,

"It's okay," he assured her, he took a moment before answering her question, "Sometimes, but other times, like now, he's locked away in the back of my mind."

"Locked away?" her unhappy tone did not go unnoticed but he simply nodded,

"Imagine my mind like a big room,"

"In accommodation to your oversized brain." She added smartly, he gave her an amused smirk,

"Yes, now cut that in half. One part of it is me; the other half is the Other Guys'. But instead of letting him roam freely about in my mind I have him locked up in cage." Emily frowned but let him continue, "Reinforced, with motion detectors, a few land mines. My point is, is he's under control and put away."

"So you're imprisoning him?" she accused dryly, Bruce shot her an indignant glare,

"What's your point?"

"My point is," she gave an exasperated sigh; "you don't like being locked up and treated like a freak, imagine how that makes him feel."

"It's different," shot back Bruce, his brown eyes hardened as she crossed her arms, "He doesn't think, he doesn't feel, he's not human."

"He has eyes, a nose, mouth, and ears. He looks pretty human to me, and he acts like it too. I'd be mad if someone was shooting at me, I'd protect myself."

"You're defending him?" he asked incredulously,

"Yes, I am." She said defiantly, "You say you've come to accept this, but everything you've just told me proves otherwise. You don't trust yourself and, after all these years, you don't trust him."

"And you do?" He asked softly, she thought about it for a moment before looking him directly,

"Yes, I do." She whispered, she reached up and cupped his face as he closed his eyes in defeat, "I trust both of you." She searched his face fleetingly, brown orbs opened to meet her intense gaze, "Will you try to talk to him, for me?" Bruce regarded her for a moment; eventually he nodded as she gave him a tender smile. Emily believed that one day he could live without fear of himself, without fear of The Hulk. She wrapped her arms around his neck in a comforting hug as his own arms encircled her waist, shyly returning the gesture.

* * *

~Later that night~

Bruce sat on the single bed in his room; every single nerve in his body was on the verge of total relaxation. He sat in an upright posture, regulating his breathing, thinking of absolutely nothing. When he passed the invisible line into his mind he was met with the sight of the large metal bars he had erected in the back half of his mind. They were large and seemed to span on forever either way, the only way in and out was a large door locked down tight. Hidden behind the bars, breathing heavily was the Other Guy. He had his back turned to Bruce, half hidden in the shadows of the cage.

Tentatively the doctor stepped forward and grasped the cold metal between his hands, he felt like he was bribing the Other Guy to come forward. He tried talking to him, as stupid as he sounded, but he got no response. Unable to think of anything else Bruce was on the brink of calling it quits when one last idea popped up. He showed the Other Guy a mental image of Emily.

That got his attention.

The giant snorted in confusion as he looked at the projection Bruce had put up. He was shown several different pictures, but the one he seemed to like the most was when Emily smiled. A hand went out to grasp her but he grunted irritably when it swept through nothing. He twisted around to peer at Bruce from the shadows, green eyes piercing into him. He wanted to know who she was.

_A…friend…_

_PRETTY… _was the rumbling answer, Bruce nodded in agreement,

_Her name is Emily._

_EMILY? _The Other Guy tested out her name, seemingly satisfied about how it rolled off his tongue. _PRETTY EMILY… _He took the time to shuffle through Bruce's memory especially amused at Emily's reaction to being snapped at. He liked how cold she got, how her eyes narrowed, how dangerous she looked at that moment. He was even more entertained by Bruce's reaction straight afterwards, _STUPID BANNER, YELL AT PRETTY EMILY, EMILY BITE BACK._

That earned a chuckle from the doctor, _Yes, she bit back pretty hard._ Bruce stepped back from the cage and wiped away the extra security he had placed. He wanted to believe in Emily's trust, even if it was foolishly placed in him and The Other Guy. But both of them seem equally entranced by this girl, and as the doctor slowly made his way back to reality he heard the Other Guy's content rumble from the back of his mind,

_BANNER LIKE EMILY, HULK LIKE HER TOO._

* * *

_Huzzah! I have finished another chapter. Now as to Bruce locking the Hulk up argument, if I got anything wrong I'd be happy to take it off or change it. Either way is good for me, it's just when I saw the movie I saw that Bruce had learned how to control it and even live with it a little, But I wasn't seeing the whole acceptance thing going on there until the end of the movie. So I decided to elaborate on that, his thoughts about the Hulk not being human and such. But as I said, if it's wrong I can take it off._

_It also occurred to me that I hadn't even brought up the Big Guy at all in the story and it was a good way to get him in. They both seem to like Emily just fine here._

_As for Emily's long hair, as many of you are wondering to that, besides the fact I'm very stubborn; Emily refused to be written any other way. So that's that, and besides she just got a haircut, so hah!_

_Anyway, review and flame please. I know about the grammar and let me tell ya dialogue could've been a whole hell of a lot better, but I can edit it some later. Any tootles,_

_PathlessSpore_

_UPDATE: Fixed senteces and grammar errors._


	8. Care to Dance?

Trust in Me  
Avengers Fanfic  
Bruce Banner/ OC  
Chapter 7  
Care to Dance?

_So before we begin, let me say sorry for the wait but reasoning shall be listed in the author's note below. Now music for this chapter is as follows:_

_The song Emily plays for the group is called "Song for Sienna." By Brain Crain._

_The waltz song Tony and Emily Dance to is called "Romance-Gadfly suite" By Dmitri Shostakovich_

_And the theme where Bruce and Emily talk slightly and I think basically their theme from here on out (until further notice) is called "Opus 37" by Dustin O'Halloran._

_So I hope you listen to the songs and please enjoy the story._

* * *

2 days passed and there was still no sign of the Tesseract, nor was Tony any closer to breaking into S.H.I.E.L.D's secure network. Stark's only protest was that JARVIS was being unreasonably cautious. Not that Bruce minded, it gave him more time to spend with Emily before he had to leave. He wasn't staying, despite Tony's insistence that he come and stay at Stark Tower. Despite Emily being the greatest thing that had happened to him since the accident. But as he thought more of his eventual departure a deep-rooted idea planted itself in his mind. He thought that, perhaps, he could take Emily with him. Then they'd be together, running and hiding from those who only wanted to use them. He could show her the world, he would be her tutor, and she would be the balm to his rage, the control he sought for.

The Other Guy seemed to like that idea just fine, rumbling in contentment at the thought of Emily always being there with them. Bruce could feel him now, in the back of his mind, an incessant buzzing that only intensified when the object of their infatuation walked into the room. When she was around, the Other Guy scrambled to the front of his cage to look out at her. He was entranced by the way she moved, how the light made her brandy hair glow, and he loved it when she smiled. A dazzling gesture that made Bruce weak in the knees and the Other Guy grunt in happiness.

Bruce had spent the last two days with Emily, if by some chance she did not leave with him. Moments with her was something he wanted ingrained into his mind, something to always remember. The morning after he had talked to the Other Guy he was walking towards the lab when a hand grasped his. Startled he spun around to find only Emily, gazing softly up at him. He needed a decent meal, she said, she wasn't about to let him skip out on any more meals. Bruce let her drag him down to the cafeteria where she sat him down and proceeded to fill his plate to the brim. He wanted to argue that he was never going to eat it all, but the stern look on her face told him that any argument with her would be invalid. So he decided to humor her instead.

Afterwards, she spent the rest of the day with him, hovering close by as he worked. As evening fell she swept him out of the lab, whilst Tony smiled knowingly at the pair, and led him outside so they could watch the sunset together on the deck. They sat on the wing of a Jet Fighter, enjoying the spectacular view as the sun sank lower into the horizon. As it disappeared the night became colder and colder leaving Emily shivering. She wouldn't say a word that he knew, so he scooted closer to her to share his body heat. It was practical to his logical mind, but his ego certainly didn't miss the way she sighed and leaned into him. Then, after the sun ha d fully set, she took him down to the music room for more piano lessons.

The next day, they spent more of their time in R&D, for lack of anything better to do. Tony was working on upgrading his Iron Man suit, Bruce was testing a theory that was going to blow Einstein out of the park, while Emily was trying to explain her last name to Thor, who had decided to join them that day.

"If you are not a son, nor your father's name is Bran, then why is your last name Branson?" The Demigod was so confused, being Odinson himself. Emily just chuckled,

"Because, no one refers to themselves by their parent's name anymore. It's a practice we apparently stopped using a long while ago."

"Tis' odd..." mumbled Thor as he scratched his chin thoughtfully, everyone shared good-natured laughs as Emily patted his arm comfortingly,

"Yeah, well, no one ever accused the human race of being normal." The Demigod nodded at her logic, a hiss brought everyone's attention to the door. Natasha Romanoff looked no worse for wear, despite her calm demeanor she looked like she was about to break down any second. Her eyes were tired and her hair had a frazzled look to it. She looked at Bruce, her expression almost pleading,

"Anything?" she couldn't hide her desperation either, the doctor shook his head. He felt irritated, he had done the best he could, this woman wanted him to pull out a miracle when half of the time spent looking for the Tesseract would be spent waiting. Natasha gave a heavy sigh and nodded, she left without saying a word; her shoulders slightly drooped. All of them were frayed, nerves screaming out in frustration. Thor was stuck on earth waiting for the location of the Tesseract so he could take it and his brother back to Asgard. Tony was here for his own reasons, to show off and perhaps a genuine concern for the fate of humanity. Bruce was here so he could be left alone in the future, but he doubted they would ever truly leave him alone. But Emily, she was here to control the powers she never wanted. Nick Fury had offered her shelter, but Bruce couldn't help wonder what his underlying intentions with Emily were. There was no doubt the girl was powerful, if she learned to fully wield her power there was no end to what she could do.

Her well-being bothered him the most; he could no longer deny the attraction he felt toward her. She filled his thoughts, even when she wasn't nearby. He wanted her to be safe most of all; her personal welfare was his top priority. She thought she knew what it felt like to be a monster, to be hated for the things she had done. She knew nothing of it, and it left Bruce with a bitter taste in his mouth. She was lucky, S.H.I.E.L.D. had not been there for him when he was hiding and running, terrified out of his mind. He couldn't stop feeling envious of her innocence, but it gave him another reason to protect her from the real cruelty of the world. If she was with him, she'd never have to go through that. He'd make sure of it.

* * *

Emily could see everyone was on edge, all twiddling their thumbs just waiting; and that was what she hated most, the waiting. Steve Rogers paced about, getting more and more irritable by the hour, Tony tried to hide his weariness behind a sarcastic façade. Natasha was at the end of her rope, Thor was impatient period. But it was Bruce who seemed to be suffering worse. Everyone was looking to him for the answers, the man who understood Gamma radiation better than anyone else. It was starting to wear him down; it was starting to wear everyone down.

Emily couldn't just sit by and watch her friends suffer through the agony of waiting. She had been thinking for some time that perhaps she should do something, _anything,_ to ease the tension. For minutes she pondered wearily looking around the black and grey room, so monochromatic. No light, no warmth, cold and colorless. She gave a small gasp; perhaps there was a way to help. A party, a small get together. Music, food, polite banter. It would be a wonderful change of pace, a way to break up the monotony of the past few days.

Emily excused herself from Thor's presence and all but ran out of the room. If she wanted it to be as nice as she had imagined she needed time to prepare. All afternoon she ran back and forth across the Helicarrier; she cleared her little party with Director Fury, who thought it was a good idea, and then ran down to the mess hall to ask if they cooks could whip up something. Evening was falling and she was in the music room finishing the last of her preparations. She had run about to Tony, Natasha, Steve, Director Fury, Thor, Maria Hill, and Bruce. She all told them the same thing, come to the music room and it was a semi-formal occasion

Emily was admiring the last of her handiwork when she heard the door open, Natasha looked around the mini ballroom at the tables and chairs and the buffet. She was dressed in a simple long black dress, her hair slightly curled. Behind her Tony, dressed in a pair of tan slacks and a black button up shirt, sauntered in and gave Emily a curious stare. One by one they all filed in, not used to so much attention Emily blushed at stuttered,

"I'm glad you could all make it," she muttered as she looked down, she wished she didn't look like such a fool, "It's just that… Well you all seemed stressed lately and I really wanted to help. I'm not smart, and I can't even control my own powers that well, but I just couldn't stand by and watch as you all buried yourselves alive under all that pressure."

"That's really thoughtful Emily," replied Natasha sweetly, "I'm glad you did this."

"What better way to take a load off than with a party?" Tony spread out his hands and looked around, "I call dibs on the music."

"Not happening," shot back Steve coldly, "For all we know you'll blast something loud, this is supposed to be nice." Steve was in white slacks and a plaid button up, very dashingly handsome as he glared at Tony with his hands in his pockets. Emily cringed, just for one night she wanted them to let go of their animosity for each other, to not let their egos get in the way.

"Let us not fight amongst ourselves," grumbled Thor, he was still dressed in his armor though he did look as he had freshened up a bit. He looked between the two arguing men with discontent, "Can you not see this upsets Lady Emily?"

"Oh I know," Natasha looked at the witch excitedly, "Can you play the piano Emily? You play it so wonderfully."

Everyone looked eagerly at her, she felt a little flustered. She had never really had audience before, but they all looked so excited she didn't want to let them down. Nervously she nodded and everyone shuffled to nearby chairs to watch as she sat herself down on the bench. She wanted to play something that everyone would enjoy, nothing sad or too joyful. A nice happy medium. Her keys danced softly across the keys, the pace sweet and slow. As the tempo of the music carried her away her mind turned blank. When she played she felt at ease, she felt invincible, she felt strong. There was nothing wrong with her or the world. There was only her and her music.

As the last notes died away she sighed happily, varied clapping from behind her brought her attention around, "You have a gift Lady Emily." Complimented Thor as he stood, the others nodded as Stark sauntered over to the stereo. He bent down to pick up a CD case, after glancing it over he put it in the device. As sweet melodious music filled the room the low buzz of the others talking joined in. Natasha was speaking with Bruce eagerly over something, to which he was very interested in. Thor was conversing with Steve, while Director Fury and Maria were off in a corner discussing who knew what. Emily just sat on the bench looking over them all, content to just stand by and watch. She was startled when she felt someone tap her shoulder, quickly she looked up to see Tony Stark smirking at her,

"May I have this dance?" he asked smartly, he held out his hand for her to take. Emily Blushed and stammered but Tony would not take "no." for an answer. As he lifted her up he led her across the floor to grasp her hands and waist. Easily her free hand rested on his shoulder as he began leading her through the steps to the ballroom dance they were performing. She stepped in time with his movements, never once faltering. As he swept her across the dance floor he smirked at her,

"Now where did a girl like you learn to dance, Miss Branson?" She gave him a hard stare as he turned and pushed her back easily, he laughed at the look he was receiving, "No don't be so irritable, do you honestly think I wouldn't recognize you?" he inquired softly, Emily didn't dignify him with an answer. "Ten years ago, I beheld a little eight year old girl pushed to a corner and forgotten, she looked quite sad. I watched as she snuck off to the large ballroom in her parents' mansion. Interested, I followed only to hear the beautiful melody of a piano filtering through the closed-door."

Emily looked away; it had been so long ago when her parents had held a party in honor of Tony's birthday. Their families had been long time friends but Stark had rarely ever come around. She had dressed nicely that night in preparation, but she might as well have dressed in rags for no one even noticed her. Save for a younger looking Tony Stark, who had watched her since he had arrived at his party. She remembered as she sat at the large Grand Piano sweeping her fingers across the keys sadly, playing a song that matched the aching of her heart. She hadn't heard the young billionaire sneak in to listen to her music. But she did hear the echoing of his clapping once she had finished, she was frightened and she turned to run only to be stopped by him. Never before had one person given her so much attention, save for her aunt. He talked to her for a long time, learning her name and her love for music. But afterwards, as the party ended, she had never heard from him again.

"I'm surprised you remembered." Muttered Emily, Tony just gave her a snarky look,

"Of course I remembered, I hardly ever forget pretty girls such as you." She just scowled at him playfully and that earned her a laugh. "I always wondered what had happened to you, you know."

"As you can see, I'm just fine."

"But you're still as lonely as ever," Tony gave an amused huff, "Well, I really can't say that now, can I?" he gave a quick glance to Bruce only to be surprised at the glare he was receiving. Stark smiled smugly down at her, "I think your boyfriend is jealous."

"He's not my boyfriend, Mr. Stark." She retorted hotly, he swept her around again. Tony chuckled,

"Really? After all that time you spend together, all the talks and giggles that you share? You have him acting like a school boy with a crush. And tonight, he hasn't been able to take his eyes from you, dressed in that nice white flowing dress and white heels. You even let your hair down for tonight. Quite nice, if I might add."

"What's your point, Mr. Stark?" she asked irritably,

"My point is," he leaned over to whisper in her ear, "You like him." He almost laughed at her blush, "You give him the same look he gives you." As the waltz ended he backed away professionally, smoothing out his sleeves. Before he turned to walk back to the tables he gave her a pointed stare, "He's just a little better at hiding it." Emily watched him retreat, a little flustered, as Natasha came up to her side,

"Where did you learn to dance like that?"

"Just something I picked up." Was the muttered reply, Emily left the woman confused as she wandered over to a nearby table to sit. Maybe she did like Bruce, she always felt nervous around him. She always tried to impress him; she wasn't smart or as pretty as Natasha, her beautiful red hair and perfect body. She loved the red haired spy; she was like the sister she always wanted. But she couldn't help feeling invisible when the older agent was around. Emily was so lost in her thoughts she failed to notice Bruce come up beside her. He tapped her shoulder carefully and startled she looked up. She gave him a soft smile,

"This is your party too." Said Bruce as he pulled up a chair and sat beside her. He was dressed as he always was, black slacks and a white button up shirt. He had left the last to buttons open to show some of his chest, Emily tried not to stare. Did he really share the same feelings for her? She couldn't help wondering, he was older than she. He preferred to be by himself most often than not. She couldn't help wondering if she had been a bother to him since the beginning. "What are you thinking about Emily?"

Bruce's voice startled her. She wanted to tell him how she felt, if there was some chance that maybe he did like her as much she liked him. But her fear of rejection caused her to shake her head smoothly,

"Nothing you need to be concerned about." He frowned at her; he could read her like an open book. He could see something was bothering her, and she could see it was all he could do not to ask. He respected her privacy enough for that. Instead he chose to stand up and hold out his hand to her. The music on the stereo had turned to another slow waltz. With a soft smile she took it and let him sweep her away into the night, determined to make her forget all of her troubles.

* * *

_A/N: Wow, it's been a while but I have been through a lot lately. I've had work and some Christmas and birthday shopping to do. Then two days ago my brother was airlifted to a hospital. I was staying with my uncle at the time when I got the call. He hadn't slept in days, he was nauseous, and his lips and eyes were almost black and blue. He's gotten a little better but he's far from normal so my poor baby brother won't be released from the hospital anytime soon. Poor kid has been stuck with so many needles I cried. Doctors still don't know what's wrong with him. I'm only finding time to write now cause I'm caring for my two little sisters by myself and as of right now I have no house chores to do and the girls are at school. Oh, well, what do you know, Dryers done!_

_Well I hoped you enjoyed this chapter and I hope I can get the next one out as soon as I can._

_PathlessSpore_

_UPDATE:Fixed sentences and grammar errors_


	9. Do you see their faces too?

Trust in Me  
Avengers Fanfic  
Bruce Banner/ OC  
Chapter 8  
Do you see their faces too?

_For what I've done, I start again  
and whatever pain may come  
today this ends  
I'm forgiving what I've done_

_What I've done-Linkin Park_

* * *

Bruce probably could have slept through the flickering lights and the shouts of the agents outside his door. He could have ignored the crashing and the banging against his wall with enough will. It was the scream that tore him away from sleep, the inhuman screech of terror that ripped through the thick steel walls and reached his eardrums. Bruce gasped and bolted into an upright position, he was utterly confused to what was going on. The flickering lights disoriented him ever worse the sudden wake up, along with the loud noises and the unearthly screaming. Voice outside his bedroom door drew his attention and in a flash he was up out of bed and into the hallways. He ran into Maria Hill and ducked a flying canister that had been hurled down the hall. The air felt tense and heavy, making it difficult to breathe. What had happened in the mere hours Bruce had been asleep? As if she had heard his unvoiced question Maria turned to him and called out above the uproar,

"It's Emily, she's having another nightmare!"

Shocked he looked around at the chaos that was ensuing; all of this was created from Emily's nightmare? He followed the agent down the hall to where a group was trying to pry open her door. The closer they got the heavier the pressure became almost sending Bruce to his knees. He was gasping for air as they reached the door; the turmoil wasn't doing wonders for his stress. Not to mention his worry for Emily's safety. He could feel the Other Guy slamming his fists against his cage, she needed them right now! Maria Hill and the others had managed to pry the door back enough for a person to slip in. Without thinking he ducked in.

It was even worse inside Emily's bedroom; her personal belongings were flying about the room in a storm of raw emotion. He could feel her terror, her guilt, her pain, and her sadness. She was screaming, tossing on the bed, trapped in her worst possible dreams. He threw up an arm against the buffeting wind she had created, pushing his way through to reach her. The closer he got the harder it became until finally he was able to grasp her hand. He pulled himself onto her bed and wrapped his arms around her, cradling her in his lap. He smoothed out her hair watching as agonized tears fell down her face. Whatever moment she was reliving had caused her a great amount of grief for it to manifest so violently.

"Emily," he called, hoping his voice would reach inside her personal hell, "Emily, please wake up." He clutched her even tighter as a vicious spasm rocked her body; she screamed and arched her back in pain. The storm around him grew worse as her nightmare deepened, pulling her along with it. Bruce was at a loss on what to do, all he could offer was comfort she could not feel and a voice she could not hear. "Emily," he pleaded, "it's okay, I'm here, we're here. Wake up." Bruce felt the Other Guy course through his veins, but instead of rage he felt the desire to protect her from her night terrors. His arms brought her close, offering her safety and warmth. Through the storm he spoke to her, him and the Hulk, sharing the same body, the same consciousness, and the same love.

Slowly the wind died, she stopped fighting him as her screaming finally came to end. Then it all stopped, various objects fell to the floor in a loud crash. She shuttered as she pried open her eyes, red from her crying. Stray tears fell down her cheeks in seamless streaks as she gazed up at him wearily,

"Bruce…" she whispered, her eyes searched his until she threw her face into his chest and started to sob. He cradled her against him, holding her as he watched her shoulders shake uncontrollably. He ran a hand through her long hair, whispering words of comfort to her knowing that she needed it. She clutched him in her hands, nails digging into his skin. He didn't feel them nor did he care to. Eventually her crying died leaving behind silent tears to shed. She lay in the crook of his arm, staring off into nothing as he stroked her hair gently.

"Emily," he called softly, she looked up at him, "What did you see?" She gave him a small dead smile. In answer she reached a weary hand and touched his forehead. A bright light filled his eyes and his mind, blinding him.

"Let me show you." Her reply snaked through his head, a sad whisper. When his vision returned they were no longer in her room aboard the Helicarrier. Instead they were lying in a cobblestone street with elegantly decorated houses. The architecture of each made with such flawless design. The city felt and looked old, he immediately recognized this location as Venice. But how had they come here? A noise to his right drew his attention and he cried out in shock as an incoming car flew right towards them. He tried to move only to find him stuck in place; it was an even greater shock when the vehicle passed right through them.

"It's only a memory, Bruce."

Bruce shook his head as he looked down at Emily. However, her attention was focused across the street and he glanced up to see what she was staring at. He watched in awe as Emily strode easily down the street, not the one that lay in his arms, an Emily dressed inconspicuously toting a large satchel at her side. She had said it was only a memory, but what could she be showing him? Together they watched as the memory sat at a café, she looked around before opening her bag and taking out a large black book. This Emily looked terrified and lost; she had no obvious idea on what she was doing. Bruce then realized that this was before she had joined S.H.I.E.L.D. If so, then this was shortly after she had found the book that had changed her life.

From down the sidewalk a man dressed in black caught his eye, Bruce immediately recognized his type. He was an agent for some company; he could tell by the way he walked, the way he dressed. Swallowing Bruce's gaze followed the gentleman until he came to a halt at the table where Emily was sitting. She glanced up at him, foolishly leaving her precious book out in the open. They started talking, they were too far away to hear the whole conversation but he got the gist of it. The man knew her name, her plight, offered her protection for something in return. They wanted to use her for their own personal gain, and then toss her aside when they were done. But Emily wasn't entirely stupid, she shook her head vigorously in rejection to his offer, but this man wouldn't take "no" for an answer. He snatched up the book and made to turn around and run away. But Emily's hand reached out faster than Bruce could see. She grabbed him by the arm and brought him around. She made a mad grab for her book and commenced a tug of war.

"Give it back!" she yelled loudly, she was trying to draw attention to herself. It was working because several people turned their heads to see. They fought even harder over the book, but the Agent pulled back and punched Emily straight in the face. She reeled backwards and landed on the ground with a loud thud. Several people shot out of their chairs and ran for Emily's assailant, shouting out their protests. No one would ever make it far, however. Stressed, scared, and alone, Emily lost control of her powers. Bruce watched in horror as a bright light exploded from her body, blinding him again. He could hear the destruction, could almost feel the heat of the explosion. He threw an arm up to protect his face, even though he knew it was only a memory.

Then everything came back into focus, Bruce stared in shock at the complete carnage that was left. The entire street was gone, obliterated; buildings lay in ruin, dead bodies were scattered everywhere, and not all of them were intact. A groan caught his attention and he saw Emily push a side a heavy beam as she crawled out of the wreckage. Now noticing her surroundings, she looked around in terror. Sobs escaped her mouth as tears poured down her cheeks; she stumbled backwards tripping over fallen debris. The real Emily, who still lay in his arms, now moved away. Easily she stood up, walking toward where her memory was slowly starting to lose her grip on reality. Bruce moved after her, following behind as the memory touched something with her hand. She examined it only to find blood, she screamed as she looked down. Both hands clasped her mouth as more tears fell furiously. The real Emily stopped at the edge of the crater, Bruce just behind her.

Resting inside, her green eyes open and lifeless, was the body of a little girl with beautiful black hair. She wore a red sundress and clutched in her arms was a blood stained, scorched teddy bear. The memory began to cry uncontrollably, clutching her chest as she tried to stop hyperventilating. In the distance sirens caught her attention; she glanced up knowing full well that if she was found alive here they would assume she was the one who had destroyed the street. Wasting no time, she stumbled up and searched for her book frantically. When she had it in hand she dashed off down the remains of the road, disappearing in the white distance.

Bruce returned his attention to back to the real Emily only to find her still gazing down at the little girl. Her face was emotionless, this had been the first time she had ever killed someone, albeit accidentally. Saddened, he reached his arms around her and brought Emily back into his chest, offering his understanding. Slowly everything faded back to white as Emily pulled them out of her memory. Bruce opened his eyes to find them back in her room, resting on her bed. He looked down at her as she stared up at him. Her eyes searched his for any signs of hate or blame, he just held her closer.

"Do you see them," she whispered quietly, "Do you see the faces of the ones you killed?" He gave a slight rueful smile,

"Yes." He replied, "All of them."

"Bruce..." he gazed down at her, his heart breaking at the look on her face, "I don't want to be alone anymore." His mind went blank at that moment; whether it was him or the Other Guy he still had yet to decide, but he found himself caressing her face softly bring her up towards him, their lips so dangerously close. Logical Bruce would have ruined the entire moment had a giant green hand not grabbed him and pulled him into the dark depths in his cage. It didn't matter anymore, nothing mattered but her.

* * *

When their lips finally did meet Bruce kissed like he was the loneliest man in the world. He seemed to worship the feel of her mouth against his, drawing in the very air from her lungs. Emily felt him shift his weight, laying her down upon the bed with him fully on top. His palms rest on either side of her head, caging her in as she wrapped her arms around his neck. He deepened their kiss, taking all she had to give; she was willing to give everything if this moment could only last. His hands caressed her softly, gentle touches on her skin that set her ablaze. He was pushing her deeper into the mattress to get closer to her. Deliberately or not, Emily slipped her legs around his waist her mind a wonderful hazy mess. She couldn't think as he slipped his tongue past her defenses, devouring her body and soul.

Then, very suddenly, he pulled away with a gasp. He all but buried his face into her chest as she fought to regain her composure. She trembled slightly as he placed a kiss on her collarbone; "Emily…" his voice was barely above reverent whisper, "What do you do to me?" He trailed his lips up until he found her mouth again. This time their meeting was not as heated and passionate. Bruce memorized the way she moved her lips against his, as if he never wanted to forget. When he opened his eyes she saw brown orbs flecked with green. He was so close to losing the last of his precious control. She understood now what she did to him, how she made him throw caution out the window. She had never once realized that this was hard for him, to be so close to her but so afraid to have her because of his fear of hurting her. She smiled softly at him, every taut muscle in his body relaxed at the sight.

Very slowly she reached up to bring his face closer to hers, they said nothing as they spent this fleeting moment together. "Please…" she called softly to him, "Don't leave." He was quiet as he once again shifted his weight; but instead of leaving, as she thought he would, he lay at her side and pulled her closer to him. As she settled comfortably in his arms she heard the rumbled soft reply, almost like two people speaking at once,

"Never."

* * *

_Well here's the next chapter. Not as long as I wanted it or how exactly I had it wrote out but I think it works. I usually don't write kissing scenes like this but it kept coming out like that and we needed something before Bruce hulks out on the helicarrier._

_Anyway we finally found out what had happened to my brother. My brother has Aspergers, which is kinda like autism, and he has to take medication. Now here's the kicker, his previous doctors had given twice the normal dosage of meds for boys his age. So basically he had become addicted to a high amount of the drugs, when he ran out it took a day for them to refill his prescription; meanwhile my brother was having withdrawal problems and simultaneously suffering from Drug overdose. It almost shut down his kidneys, cut off most of his oxygen, and he couldn't keep anything down for four days straight. My mother slept at the hospital with my brother, absolutely refusing to leave him alone. My poor nine year old brother nearly died._

_Anyway, he's back home now, taking a well-deserved rest and being extremely well taken care of. I'm just glad he's ok now._

_So I hoped you enjoy the chapter and I know for a fact you'll enjoy the next one._

_PathlessSpore_

_UPDATE: Grammar errors have been fixed_


	10. Courting Chaos

Trust in Me  
Avengers Fanfic  
Bruce Banner/ OC  
Chapter 9  
Courting Chaos

_You've gone too far_  
_Who do you think you are_  
_Is this what you came for_  
_Well, this means war_

_This Means War-Nickelback_

* * *

When Emily awoke the next morning she felt sore, as was usual when her nightmares occurred, but she never expected to feel arms wrapped around her. She opened her tired eyes to see Bruce snoring softly next to her, clutching her to his chest like she was his last lifeline. His arms encircled her waist, his face buried into her neck. Slowly he breathed in and out as she smiled and stroked his cheek. She could stay like this forever, running her fingers through his hair as he slept peacefully on. She remembered their kiss from the night before, after he had seen what she had done. But instead of blame in his eyes, Bruce had shown her the compassion she had sought for so long.

Next to her Bruce stirred slightly, Emily's hand froze as his eyes opened, brown orbs glittering back into hers. He seemed relaxed as she began stroking his hair again, staring at her with such adoration it was starting to make her blush. She smiled at him softly as he pulled her even closer to him and placed a soft kiss on her lips. They stayed like so for many minutes, enjoying each other's warmth and security. But they both knew that they'd eventually have to return to reality and they both seemed reluctant to do so. Grudgingly, Bruce let her go so they could both sit up; it was then Emily saw the damage she had done to her room. Again.

She sighed as she looked around, everything she owned were scattered across her room, laying in jumbled piles. With a grimace she flicked her hand and muttered, "Repono…" Everything suddenly flew about, returning to their original places. A spell she had learned shortly after the first nightmare, she had gotten sick and tired of picking everything up night after night. After all her possessions were back in their proper locations she reached up and stretched. She felt several of her bones pop and her aching muscles scream in agony. She groaned in pain, a hand suddenly fell on her shoulder and she looked back to see Bruce staring at her in concern. She giggled and shook her head,

"I'm fine, I always get sore after a nightmare," she stood and walked to her dresser, her long hair cascading down her shoulders. Emily dug around for a set of clothes and a brush; she turned back to him to finding him sitting easily on the edge of her bed, "I use up all my Magick reserves so my body is forced to use its own energy." She explained as she sat down next to him. She was about to run the brush through her hair when Bruce suddenly snatched it from her grasp.

Easily he ran it down her tresses, fingers following behind. She sighed happily as she let him take care of her hair. Soon her brandy locks felt like silk against her skin as Bruce set the brush aside and rested his chin on her shoulder.

"Leave it down today." He murmured and she nodded, Emily turned her head to kiss him and his lips met hers eagerly. Her door hissed open, startling both, and in walked Tony Stark, his mouth open to say something sarcastic about the two. He barely got a word out before Emily grabbed the brush and threw it at him. Tony ducked and watched it as it sailed over his head and out into the hallway, Steve Rogers hand darted out and grabbed Stark by the collar of his shirt,

"You don't just walk into a lady's room!" he all but shouted as the playboy protested loudly. The door closed shut as the two exited, leaving the couple in stunned silence,

"I can't believe he would just do that…" growled Emily as Bruce chuckled next to her,

"I can," he retorted smartly, he received a hard stare for that which made him laugh a little harder. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders and kissed the junction between her neck and shoulder. "Emily…" There it was again, the whisper that worshipped her name, her soul, everything that she was. The way he said it caused her heart to flutter wildly in her chest, she couldn't stop the blush that crept into her face, "I want to talk to you later…" She frowned wondering what it was he wanted to discuss. But he looked at ease, so she assumed it was nothing bad. With one last kiss he left her to her own devices, though it took five minutes and a hug to finally get him to leave.

She dressed in a pair of faded blue skinny jeans, a tan sleeveless belted top, paired off with her black and white high tops. She flicked her hair over her shoulder and checked herself in the mirror. Sure she looked decently presentable she skipped out of the room and straight off towards R&D. Bruce was leaning against the head table looking out into the loading bay, arms crossed seemingly lost in thought. His head turned to the sound of her walking in and his distant eyes brightened at the sight of her. He embraced her as she came around the table,

"What did you want to talk about?" she inquired softly as she looked up at him. She blushed at the look he was giving her, a gaze that held her own, filled to the brim with adoration and love.

"When this over…" he leaned down and touched his forehead to hers, "Will you leave with me?"

Emily felt her eyes widen and her heart stop. He was asking her to disappear off the face of the planet with him. To leave behind the friends that had offered her shelter, all to be with him. She was tempted, if it meant that they were together, but she owed Nick Fury and all the others. They gave her a place to stay and helped her, though it wasn't much she couldn't just walk out on them. Her doubt must have shown on her face because his eyes saddened a bit,

"You don't have to if you don't want to," he said as he reached down and gripped her hands, "I would never force you with anything you didn't want."

"Bruce," she half chuckled, "I want to be with you more than anything,"

"But." He prompted,

"I owe Nick Fury." His eyes darkened but she continued on, "He gave me a home when the world was out to get me, I can't just turn away like that."

"Emily, you know better than that." His brown eyes were irritated, reflecting on all his doubt and hurt, "Nick Fury wants nothing more than to use you when it suits him."

"I know that," she replied gently, "Then perhaps, after that, my debt to him will be paid."

"You don't owe him anything," his voice cracked as he suddenly pulled her against him, he was about to say something when the doors opened. It was Bruce's turn to be angry at Tony's sudden intrusion. He picked up a nearby object and chucked it at him. It barely missed hitting Stark and smashed into the nearby wall. The scientist looked at it shocked,

"Is everyone out to get me today?" he asked incredulously, he glanced back at the couple suddenly realizing he had just dropped in on a private conversation, "Right," he muttered and from his pocket he procured an Ipod. He turned it on and stuck them in his ears while the music blasted loudly through the speakers. Tony then turned and gave his attention to a nearby computer; Bruce scowled at Stark's back then returned his gaze to Emily.

"Emily…" His low voice and downcast gaze tore out her heart, as he opened his mouth she placed a light finger on his lips,

"I'll think about it," she promised softly, not exactly what he wanted to hear, but knowing that she was at least considering his offer seemed to put him at ease. Emily wasn't completely hopeless, she knew Fury wanted to use her for some unknown reason, he was a spy after all, but she did owe him for not killing her, for giving her a place to stay. She wasn't that kind of person to disregard someone's kindness, even if there were ulterior motives. With a gentle smile Emily reached up and brought Bruce's face closer to hers. Their foreheads met as he stared longingly into her eyes, holding her against him. Then Emily frowned and grabbed pen cap and tossed it at Stark. It bounced on his shoulder,

"Hasn't anyone told you it's rude to eavesdrop?" she spat out coldly, Tony hunched his shoulders, both Bruce and Emily noticed a definitive lack of loud music, "I swear to any and all gods above, if you ever do that again I'll glue those damn things into your ears." Bruce smirked as a low, "Yes, Ma'am," floated over to them. When Tony turned around, tucking his Ipod back into his pocket, his eyes seemed to dart between the couple, but he chose to keep his snarky remarks to himself.

"So," his voice clearly wanted to direct them away from the fact that he had just been spying on them, "just got word from JARVIS, he's almost done breaking into S.H.I.E.L.D.'s network. If he doesn't trip any alarms, we can have all the informational candy you could ever hope for." Playful eyes and a small devious grin painted his face, "I don't know about you, but I'm all excited."

On cue, the screen Stark was fiddling with brought up a huge amount of information. A large warning label blinked on the screen, "Sir?" a smooth British accent filtered through the speakers, "The last file will activate an alarm; shall I proceed?" Tony said nothing as he swiped it open, spilling out every last dirty secret S.H.I.E.L.D. had. Bruce furrowed his brow and walked over to Tony's side to see over his shoulder. Curious as well, Emily wandered to the other side and gasped at what she saw.

Blueprints, for weapons she had never seen before, appeared and littered the screen. One after the other, "Oh my god." She whispered in horror, she gave a quick glance to Bruce whose visage was deathly calm. But she could see the anger burn behind his eyes; Tony didn't look all that pleased either,

"I knew they were hiding something…" Muttered Tony. His eyes flickered to the door; Emily knew who he was waiting for. It took all but ten minutes for Nick Fury to walk in and spot the trio. Tony seemed relaxed, lounging on the lab table; Bruce was at his side gazing at Fury with such intensity Emily was surprised he wasn't on fire. She lingered near him; she could feel his rage despite his calm persona as Nick stalked towards them,

"What are you doing, Mr. Stark?"

The playboy looked almost amused, "Uh, kind of been wondering the same thing about you." His snarky retort earned him a cold glare from the director,

"You're supposed to be locating the Tesseract."

Bruce's reply was smooth as he pointed to the device resting on a nearby table, "We are," he sounded even and level-headed as he strode over to Tony's other side, subconsciously he put himself between Nick and Emily, "The model's locked, and we're sweeping for the signature now. When we get a hit we'll have the location within a half a mile."

"Yeah, then you get your Cube back; no muss, no fuss." A loud ring brought everyone's awareness to the computer screen Tony was looking at, "What is 'Phase 2'?"

Before Nick could cover his ass a loud bang attracted attention to Steve Rogers, he had set a heavy-looking gun down on the table. His expression told every person he wasn't happy. Bruce stiffened as Emily grabbed a hold of his arm; Captain Rogers glared accusingly at Fury,

"Phase 2 is S.H.I.E.L.D uses the cube to make weapons, sorry computer was moving a little slow for me," he glanced pointedly at Stark who gave him a blank stare.

"Rogers, we gathered everything related to the Tesseract," Emily could see he was trying to back pedal out of the situation. She didn't know who he was trying to fool, he was in a room with two super geniuses, a soldier with a sense of duty and honor, and she liked to think she was pretty damn smart. Bruce shook his head and proceeded to rub the bridge of his nose trying to calm his nerves, "This does not mean we're making-"

"I'm sorry, Nick," called out Tony as he turned the screen around to show everyone in the room what was on it, "What were you lying?" It showed designs for what seemed to be a missile; if it was powered by the cube it could cause an enormous amount of damage in the wrong hands. It was like giving a gun to children, extremely destructive children with a taste for power and money.

"I was wrong, Director," Fury was backed into a corner now, everyone almost converging on all sides. Thor and Natasha walked in through the Lab doors as Bruce rounded the table. Emily followed closely behind him, a hand on his bicep, trying to convey every calm feeling to him that she could, "The world hasn't changed a bit."

"Did you know about this?" But Emily could already see Bruce knew the answer, confirmed by Natasha's quick reply,

"You want to think about removing yourself from this environment, Doctor?" Bruce gave a harsh, dry laugh,

"I was in Calcutta, I was pretty well removed."

"Loki is manipulating you," the red head tried to reason,

"And you've been doing what, exactly?"

"You didn't come here because Emily bat her eyelashes at you." The brandy haired woman stiffened, she couldn't believe that the red-haired agent was dragging her into this. Bruce wasn't going to put up with it either, because he once again stood protectively in front of the witch,

"You leave her out of this," he hissed through his teeth, "and I'm not leaving because suddenly you get a little twitchy." He indicated to the screen and glared at the director, "I'd like to know why S.H.I.E.L.D is using the Tesseract to make weapons of Mass Destruction."

It was quiet, Nick Fury was considering all of his options before he suddenly pointed at Thor, "Because of him."

Thor looked incredulous at the Director, "Me?"

"Last year, Earth had a visitor from another planet that had a grudge match that leveled a small town," Nick turned to all as he explained his reasons, though all glanced at the Demigod fleetingly, "We learned that not only we are not alone, but we are hopelessly- hilariously- outgunned."

"My people want nothing but peace with your planet," retorted Thor reasonably,

"But you're not the only people out there, are you?" replied Nick quietly, "And you're not the only threat. The world's filling up with people who can't be matched, that can't be controlled."

"Like you controlled the cube?" retorted Steve coldly,

"Your work with the Tesseract was what drew Loki to it, and his allies." The Demigod gritted his teeth in anger as he glowered at the director, "It is a signal to all the realms that Earth is ready for a higher form of war."

"A higher form?"

"You forced our hand," retorted Fury, "We had to come up with-"

"A nuclear deterrent," cut in Tony sarcastically, "Because that always calms everything right down."

Nick turned to Stark and eyed him reproachfully, "Remind me again how you made your fortune, Stark?"

"I'm sure if he still made weapons, Stark would be neck-deep…"

"Hold on," interjected the playboy, he strode over to Rogers and nearly stood toe to toe with the man, "How is this now about me?"

"I'm sorry, isn't everything?"

"I thought humans were more evolved than this?"

Emily issued a threatening hiss as she glared coldly at Thor, "You know nothing about us."

"And do we come to your planet and blow stuff up?" The Director turned to stare down the demigod. All at once voices rose above others, causing a clamor of accusation and anger. Emily hissed and covered her ears to block out the noise but the intense buzz still filtered through. Everyone talking and arguing at once, she wished it would just stop. Steve and Tony almost at each other's throat, Natasha arguing with Thor and Bruce.

"You speak of control, yet you court chaos."

"That's his M.O. isn't it?" everyone fell silent as they all turned to look at Bruce, "I mean what are we, a team? No, we're a chemical mixture that makes chaos. We're a time bomb." The witch couldn't help feeling that he was right, all their egos, morals (or lack thereof), different views caused them to clash with each other. Fury stared down the scientist, each step towards him was almost careful,

"You need to step away."

"Why shouldn't the guy let off a little steam?" Tony placed a friendly arm on Steve's shoulder who proceeded to shove it off with a glare,

"You know damn well "Why", back off." He spat out,

"Oh, I'm starting to want you to make me." Threatened Tony, the two men squared off,

"Yeah. Big man in a suit of armor," he circled Stark like a wolf to a super powered deer, "Take that off, what are you?"

"Genius, Billionaire, Playboy, Philanthropist." Tony Stark didn't even bother to look fazed as he gave Rogers an even stare,

"I know guys with none of that, worth ten of you. I've seen the footage; the only thing you really ever fight for is yourself. You're not the guy to make the sacrifice play, to lay down on a wire and let the other guy crawl over you."

"I think I would just cut the wire." Remarked Tony sarcastically, Emily shook her head in disappointment as Steve gave a scoff,

"Always a way out." His calm demeanor suddenly turned angry, "You know, you may not be a threat but you better stop pretending to be a hero."

"A hero, like you? You're a laboratory experiment Rogers, everything special about you came out of a bottle." His voice was cold and cut like the edge of a razor, Tony was starting to show his hate and anger towards Steve. All watched as the two stared each other down,

"Put on the suit, let's go a few rounds."

A laugh stumbled out of Thor as he looked between the two arguing men amusedly, "You people are so petty," he commented, "And tiny." Bruce muttered under his breath as Fury turned to Natasha,

"Agent Romanoff, would you please escort, Dr. Banner back to his-"

"Where?" Bruce's sarcasm was not lost to anyone as he leaned on the table, "You rented out my room."

"The cell was just in case-"

"You needed to kill me," accused the doctor, he gave a rueful smile, "But you can't, I know, I've tried." The room settled into an uncomfortable silence as Emily's grip loosened on his arm. She stared at him in disbelief as he gave her a quick side glance, "I got low," he explained in a short tone, she shook her head and opened her mouth to tell him to stop, that he didn't need to tell anyone, but he wouldn't hear it, "I didn't see an end so I put a bullet in my mouth and the other guy spit it out." All eyes were on him, quiet and nervous, "So I moved on, I focused on helping people. I was good until you dragged me back into this freak show and put everyone here at risk."

He then turned to Emily; she could see his eyes were no longer focused, angry, flecks of green tinting the brown. Her breath caught in her chest as her stomach leapt to her throat, "You want to know my secret, Emily? You want to know how I stay calm?" His teeth were clenched but she was more focused on what was in his hands, Fury and Natasha slowly went to unclip their guns,

"Bruce…" Emily's hands reached up and wrapped around his neck, his attention snapped back into focus for a moment. He looked confused and dazed, "Please, put down the scepter." Puzzled his looked down at his hands and was surprised to find Loki's staff clasped in his iron grip. Emily could hear his heart hammering in his chest; a loud beep rang through the room. Bruce's head snapped to the computer,

"Got it…" Muttered Tony as Bruce put back the weapon, "Sorry kids," he muttered as he unwrapped himself from Emily's hold and stalked over to the computer, "you don't get to see my party trick after all."

"You've located the Tesseract?" At once everyone seemed to move,

"I could get there fastest." Commented Stark as Natasha and Emily followed Bruce to get a glimpse of the Cube's location.

"The Tesseract belongs on Asgard," retorted Thor as he turned to Tony, "No human is a match for it." Stark turned to leave but was stopped by Steve,

"You're not going alone."

"Are you gonna stop me?" Challenged the Scientist, Rogers looked ready to pummel him. Emily watched the two in disgust as she snuck a peek around Bruce.

"Put on the suit, let's find out."

"I'm not afraid to hit an old man."

"Put on the suit."

"Shut up, both of you!" snapped Emily, the windows panes started to tremble as she glowered at the two arguing men, "Seriously, how old are you?!" Before anyone could get a word out she heard Bruce mutter from right beside her,

"Oh, my god…" She glanced up at him; he was looking at everyone in horror. Her eyes quickly darted to the screen he was looking at but before she could so much as read a letter everything went to hell. An explosion tore apart the room. She felt the heat sear around her as the blast sent Natasha, Bruce, and she sailing straight out a nearby window down to the cold metal landing below.

* * *

_A/N: The ending kinda sucks, I know but I was really at a loss for words at the moment. Anyway, cliffhangers for everyone! I'm writing out the next chapter as we speak, but since I'll be moving within the next few weeks I don't know when I'll be able to update again. All I can say is: Be patient my kiddies. Anyway, you know the drill. Read, leave a review, flame away if need be._

_PathlessSpore_

_UPDATE: Fixed Grammar errors_


	11. Her True Nature

Trust in Me  
Avengers Fanfic  
Bruce Banner / OC  
Chapter 10  
Her true Nature

_All is lost again, but I'm not giving in_

_I will not bow, I will not break, I will shut the world away_  
_I will not fall, I will not fade, I will take your breath away_  
_And I'll survive every night, I have lost the will to change_  
_And I'm not proud, cold blooded fake_  
_I will shut the world away_

_I will not bow-Breaking Benjamin_

* * *

Emily wished she could say that falling on her arm awkwardly on the metal landing didn't hurt. She wished she could say she was smart enough to realize that there was debris falling right behind her and she scrambled out of the way just in time. She wished she could even say she kept a level head while everything around her fell apart. But, as it were, she was too busy being pinned down by a heavy metal pipe and trying not to cry as every pain receptor in her arm screamed. Sweat lined her forehead as she struggled under the wreckage while next to her Natasha and Bruce both groaned. The red haired spy fought to free her trapped leg while Bruce slowly came to, Emily wriggled harder from underneath her trap only to gasp in pain as an uncomfortable icy jolt rocketed up her arm.

"We're okay," replied Natasha into her head piece, strained panting brought both women's attention around to watch in horror as Bruce clenched his fist and every muscle in his body seized. "We're okay, right?" whimpered the spy, more to herself than anything, and the urgency of the situation spurred Emily to struggle harder. Adrenaline coursed through her veins, numbing her overworked nerves and giving her the strength to push the heavy debris off of her. With a gasp she crawled out of her snare and stumbled over to Natasha who was trying with all her might to free her foot.

"Doctor?" Emily tried to use both hands to lift the heavy pipe only to give a screech as her right hand protested. She cradled it against her chest in pain trying to hold back a whimper, "Bruce?" He was on his hands and knees now, his breathing labored and pained, he was fighting with every fiber of his being to stop the impending change. "You've got to fight it; this is just what Loki wants." Again the witch bent down to pick up the pipe, using one hand she lifted with all of her remaining strength, gritting her teeth and heaving. "You're going to be okay, listen to me," Emily wished she would at least try to help her instead of trying to delay the inevitable. From behind them she heard a distinct voice call out,

"Are you hurt?" With one look at Bruce, and Natasha's frantic hand gestures, they wasted no time turning tail and running away.

"We're going to be okay, all right? I swear on my life, I will get you out of this, both of you." Emily glanced down to the red haired spy suddenly, Natasha's eyes were sincere and honest as she placed a comforting hand on her ankle, "You will walk away and never ever-"

"Your life!" was the monstrous reply, Bruce was almost gone. His build was slowly becoming taller and wider, the seams of his shirt ripped as muscle definition tore through. He groaned and arched his back as green crawled across his skin. In a last desperate bid to save them, Bruce flung himself as far as he could from the pair,

"Look," panted Emily as she tried again to free Natasha, "I appreciate what you're trying to do, I'm willing to bet Bruce does too, but instead of making promises that really don't apply at the time why not help me get you _free_!" With a strained yell she managed she lift up the debris and the spy slid her foot free with a gasp. She was up and running to safety but turned when she realized that the witch had not followed her. Emily was slowly approaching Bruce, much to Natasha's horror, and was about to rest her hand on his shoulder when she was pulled back,

"Are you crazy?" She tugged desperately at her as Bruce gave one final roar and completed his change, he grunted in confusion smashing a fist into a nearby tank. "We need to get out of here before he notices us."

"No," Emily denied firmly, pulling herself from her friends grip, "Let me try to calm him."

"But Emily-"

"Natasha, please."

There was a moment's silence before the red haired spy nodded reluctantly. With one last glance at the Hulk she too turned and ran. Swallowing hard Emily briefly wondered what she had gotten herself into this time before turning around. The Hulk panted heavily, observing his surroundings, as the witch picked her way quietly to him. She cringed as her foot hit a piece of debris causing a loud metal bang to resonate about the area. Hulk's head whipped around to face her, intense green eyes bore into her as anger clouded them over. With a loud roar he turned around fully to charge her. Emily froze in fear, every muscle in her body locked up as he came closer and closer.

As he reached back to bat her out of his way she suddenly reached up and cupped his cheek. His green skin felt smooth beneath her fingertips and with a grunt of surprise the Hulk screeched to a halt and stopped mid swing to stare at her in shock. Gently Emily smiled at him running her fingers over his cheek and up into his hair, she almost laughed at his lost expression as she felt the curls slide through her fingers.

"Bruce?" she whispered, that earned her a grunt of irritation as he furrowed his brow and glared at her. She chuckled, "No, he's in there somewhere, but it's your turn now isn't it?" He seemed pleased at that as he sat down and grabbed her around the waist to bring her closer. She gasped and cradled her injured hand to her chest, he gazed at her concerned.

"I fell," she explained, she pointed up and his gaze followed it to stare at the broken glass window, "from all the way up there. When I hit the ground," she indicated to the spot where she had landed, "I hurt myself." A deep hum rumbled from his chest as he brought her closer to him and nuzzled her hair, earning a laugh and a red hot blush from her face. "It's probably just sprained, but I should still get it looked at." She glanced back to where Natasha had run off; she had calmed him down considerably. But she loathed the thought of leaving him alone, knowing full well that an idiot with a gun could come along. "Do you want to come with me to find a doctor?"

He snorted in surprise and pulled his head back to study her. She gave him an innocent smile as he slowly stood up and let her rest in the palm of his large hand, "You have to promise to behave yourself." She warned lightly, pointing a finger at him. He gave her funny look as they started off between the pipes and tanks. Many times he had to bend down just to avoid hitting his head as they slowly picked their way out. Eventually they walked up to a more populated part of the Helicarrier, several soldier and engineers were running about trying to assess any damage done. When they caught sight of the Hulk some just froze in fear while others went straight for their guns.

A growl erupted from the Hulks throat and his muscles tensed up. Emily reached up and brought his attention to her, "If you mind your business they'll mind their own." She said it loud enough for everyone to hear, getting her hint they slowly reclipped their weapons, though some seemed reluctant to do so. She twisted around and pointed to a nearby engineer, "Is there a doctor nearby? I'd like someone to look at my hand."

Shakily he indicated down a nearby hallway, the two rumbled off as they contemplated each other. "Em-ily." His voice was deep and baritone coming from deep within his chest. She smiled at him when she heard her name and nodded,

"Yes, I'm Emily." She gazed into his green eyes and reached out to touch his face rewarding her with a deep rumble of contentment.

"Pretty Em-ily." She blushed at his boldness; she had to remind herself that Hulk and Bruce were two different people. Where the good doctor was shy and kind Hulk was forceful and brazen. She was constantly reminded of that fact whenever the big green giant touched her hair or ran a large finger over her body. He prodded and experimented with his limits, limits that stopped when he started to tug on her clothes. Emily bat his hand away playfully as they came into a larger room, an older woman was tending to the wounded when the pair came lumbering up. The doctor looked up her eyes staring warily at the Hulk but seemingly more concerned for Emily.

"Hello, Dr. Mayfield."

"What did you do to yourself this time." Scolded the woman, her long brown hair was tied into a bun. Brown eyes studied the strange duo as Emily indicated that she wanted to be let down. Almost reluctantly Hulk gently set her on her feet but warily stood by in case she needed protecting. She grinned at his child like antics and held out her injured hand,

"I got thrown out a window, the usual."

"Hm…" was her reply as careful and skillful fingers felt along the joint between the hand and the arm. Emily hissed slightly as the Doctor tried to twist the wrist,

"That hurts." She bit out through clenched teeth. Dr. Mayfield barely glanced at her,

"The wrist is sprained and perhaps a few fractures in your hand," The woman reached into a nearby bag and pulled out a roll of gauze. A curious snort caught Emily's attention as the doctor wrapped her hand. Hulk was bending over to get a better look watching the woman intently as she finished. "Try not to move your hand so much so it will heal properly."

"Thank you Dr. Mayfield." Satisfied that Emily was taken care of Hulk once again wrapped a hand around her waist and brought her close to his chest. A deep rumbling hum emanated from him as she rested her head against his torso. With no real destination in mind the two wandered off down different halls. It seemed everyone had been informed that Emily was currently occupying the Hulk because most kept their distance. Occasionally someone got too close for comfort earning a reprimanding growl from the green giant effectively scaring whoever it was away.

Eventually Hulk settled them in an abandoned corridor. Easily he let her down and crouched on his haunches. They studied each other; they were quite a pair she thought. Beauty and the Beast almost, she smiled gently and reached up to run her fingers through his curls. He closed his eyes contentedly and hummed as she reveled in the silky feel of his hair. Methodically her touch left his hair and traveled down to his smooth face; she traced his powerful jaw line and let her fingers find his collar-bone. The hum she heard intensified when she splayed her fingers over his chest and traced the contours she found there. She memorized every sinewy muscle she found admiring the raw strength he gave off from just simply being.

When her hands found his face again he opened his eyes to gaze longingly at her. The open boldness of his want made her blush and flick her eyes away. He would have none of that as he used his large finger to force her to look at him. Emily felt his fingers in her hair, admiring her as she had done with him. They were so engrossed with each other both failed to notice heavy footsteps until it was almost on top of them. The Hulk grunted in annoyance at the interruption and both turned to see who it was. Very suddenly Hulk was tackled and sent sailing through the nearby wall. Emily could only glimpse a head of long blonde hair and blue and silver armor.

"THOR!" she screamed in fury as she ran to follow the two. They squared off staring each other down, before anyone could take a swing she dived right in between them and turned on the demigod in a heartbeat, "You thick-headed idiot I-" with a screech she was suddenly pushed back and out of the way,

"Stay back Lady Emily, I will protect you." Pledged Thor proudly as Hulk snarled at him,

"Protect me?" She was at a loss for words for a moment as Hulk took the first swing; Thor easily dodged him and counterattacked. "Knock it off!" Emily once again wedged herself between the two successfully pushing them apart, "I have it under control!" Thor, however, was having none of it. With more strength than he had meant to he pushed Emily off to the side again only to send her stumbling onto her hands. Pain sped up her arm as she gave a howl of agony. She panted heavily as tears stumbled from her eyes. Thor had the nerve to look abashed as he tried to apologize but his attention was suddenly occupied by an extremely ticked off green giant. When Thor was hit he was sent flying over several crates and beyond Emily's swimming vision.

Hulk followed Thor leaving behind a wounded Emily; with a groan she cradled her wrist close to her. She was sure that she had broken something having used her hands to halt her unnecessarily hard fall. She couldn't think of herself now though, Hulk and that thick headed demigod were duking it out not far away. She had to try and break up the fight before they tore their way through the R&D level. Emily staggered to a standing position and swayed dangerously before she followed after the two men, it didn't take long to find them all she had to do was follow the warpath. They had battled their way through the cargo bay and up into a lab. Emily failed to see a conventional up and was forced to use the last of her lingering Magick reserves to propel herself up. She landed with a grunt and a hiss having jarred her hand more than she had wanted to.

She arrived just in time to see Hulk throw Thor into a nearby wall, he was about to give chase when she jumped out in front of the raging giant, "Enough!" she yelled, he grunted in surprise as the blond haired demigod came stumbling out of the wall, "That is enough! I had him calm!" she rounded on Thor and threw her uninjured hand in his face, "What the hell were you thinking?!"

"Forgive me, Lady Emily," he stumbled as he rubbed the back of his head nervously, "I had just thought, perhaps,-" Whatever excuse he was going to come up with was cut short when a hail of gunfire filled the room. It immediately caught Hulk's attention and he wasted no time turning around, the bullets didn't seem to faze him all that much if only to add to his irritation further. He seemed more concerned about Emily's welfare if anything, knowing she wasn't as indestructible as he was. With a snarl and a roar he launched himself out of the window and onto the unsuspecting jet fighter.

"Hulk, no!" Emily dashed to the edge of the window, the wind tugging at her as she watched in fear as the giant tore apart the plane. The pilot had abandoned his vehicle and sent the giant blackbird plummeting from the sky finally exploding sending her green giant careening towards the earth. Her eyes scanned frantically for him as he disappeared into the clouds but to her dismay he was gone. With one last skim through the sky she turned only to find that Thor had disappeared. With a hiss she made dark promises to herself that the demigod would pay for his foolishness, she took off out a door towards the safer areas of the Helicarrier. In her injured state she was of no use to anyone but as she contemplated on where to go she felt the Helicarrier suddenly drop. She gasped as she fell to her knees her stomach reeling at the sudden loss of altitude. The large carrier tilted back sending the witch tumbling backwards down the hallway. Scrambling she grabbed for anything to hold onto; finally she successfully wrapped a hand around a railing and hugged herself to it.

For several tense minutes they all fell, briefly Emily wondered what it would be like to hit the ground from 30,000 ft. up in the air but as she was contemplating it the Helicarrier slowly evened out and stopped its rapid descent. Breathing a huge sigh of relief she slowly let go of the railing and sank her knees into the floor. Several minutes passed as she tried to calm her rapidly beating heart, her nerves were gone and her hope was swiftly diminishing. Bruce was gone, everyone on the airship was running around in mad circles while Loki's men picked them off like flies, and here she was, the all-powerful witch, and she wasn't able to do anything. She berated herself for her stupidity, now wasn't the time to feel sorry for herself, that could come later, it was time for action. She staggered upright and steadied herself before heading off down the hall.

She didn't get very far though, how could she when some unknown assailant grabbed her hair and yanked her back. She screeched in pain as she tumbled back. She landed with a thud on her back and dazedly she looked up, her eyes widened with shock as she took in the visage of a man with long slicked back hair and a cocky smile, "Loki…" But he was locked in the cell, how had he gotten out? She briefly recalled the explosion as the sudden drop the Helicarrier had taken and she suddenly realized that this was all part of his escape. She wondered why he had to be so elaborate about it but she was more concerned about her fate at the moment. The god of Mischief played with the end of her hair, twisting it around his fingers,

"Is the little witch lost?" he asked teasingly, she swallowed hard hoping her growing nervousness didn't show on his face. With a smirk he crouched down on his haunches to get closer to her, his intense eyes drilled into her, "I am curious as to why you're in this realm."

"Because I live here?" she timidly let the sentence die with the glare she received,

"Which court do you hail from." He barked out, it wasn't question, it was command. She gave him a lost stare, she didn't know what he was talking about to even give him a proper answer. He glowered at her irritably and yanked her up by her hair.

"Ouch!" she screeched, "That's my hair, it's attached to me." She spat out, she was angry enough to easily access her reserve of Magick. But before she could so much as raise her hand in retaliation she felt him press two fingers into her neck hard. She yowled as something was seared into her skin leaving behind a forceful and uncomfortable heat. She suddenly weak in the knees and extremely useless, when she tried to use her powers she found that it was suddenly not there. "What did you do to me!?"

"Stop your whimpering," spat out the demigod, he grabbed her back the neck and pushed her along the hall. She briefly hoped, as she stumbled along, that someone would see them and come to her rescue, "I placed a rune on you to prevent you from using your Magick, little witch." He led her out onto the deck of the Helicarrier where a jet fighter was waiting for them, he pushed her up the ramp and onto the floor. The back hatch hissed closed as they took off and Loki sat down on the nearby seat looking triumphant.

Emily's limbs felt boneless as she tried to get up, "What do you want with me? I'm useless," she muttered, the statement earned her an amused chuckle,

"Far from it, little witch. Do tell me, which parent raised you, Halfling." She furrowed her brow and looked up at him,

"What do you mean?"

"Which was human, your mother or your father?"

"I don't even know my father." She spat out as she tried to push herself up, her strength had abandoned her.

"So your mother raised you then; Magick does not sit well with your kind Halfling."

"My kind?"

He looked truly amused now as he openly laughed at her, "Oh, this is rich. You have no idea what you truly are, do you?" She panted heavily shaking like a leaf; he leaned over to stare her down on the floor, "Little Witch, Halfling, part of the Seen realm and the Unseen realm. Child of a human and Fae, doomed to die because you were simply born." She stopped breathing, staring up at him in horror, "I said Magick does not sit well with your kind, for good reason. Your human nature fights with your Magickal heritage for dominion over you, like two lions fighting over a dead carcass. Because of that, the powers you have often go wild and make learning the simplest spells a chore. In the end," he smirked at her, "It will destroy you, body and soul."

_A_

* * *

_/N: you asked for more Loki, did you not? I hope this satisfies you, and there will be more Loki in the next chapter so don't worry. So enjoy the cliffhanger huh and this unexpected new development. Also, happy New Year to you all!_

_PathlessSpore_

_UPDATE: Grammar errors fixed_


	12. Ultimatum

Trust in Me  
Avengers Fanfic  
Bruce Banner/OC  
Chapter 11

_And if it kills me tonight  
I will be ready to die  
A hero's not afraid to give his life  
A hero's' going to save me just in time_

_Hero-Skillet_

* * *

The bridge was silent, for the most part, Tony and Steve at the table with Nick at its head. There was a cold fury in Stark's chest, Phil's death had been unnecessary. If he had just waited for backup, waited for someone stronger than he wouldn't be in a body bag waiting to be returned home to loved ones who would never see him again. Tony Stark had just lost a dear friend, his irritation with Phil was mostly for his own amusement, he had come to appreciate the man, he had come to appreciate his belief that heroes did exist. And for moment, Tony believed he could be someone like that.

Nick Fury removed a stack of red stained cards from his coat pocket, "These were in Phil Coulson's jacket," The director studied them briefly before looking up at Steve, "I guess he never did get you to sign them." Carelessly he tossed them on the table. Somberly Rogers picked one up to study as Nick shook his head, "We're dead in the air up here. Our communications, the location of the cube, Banner, Thor, even Emily…" There was a stretched out silence, Tony stared off into his lap in silence, "I've got nothing for you. I lost my one good eye." Another silence, "Maybe I had that coming." Fury shook his head in defeat and started pacing the length of the table,

"Yes, we were going to build an arsenal with the Tesseract," Tony and Steve eyed him carefully; "I never put all my chips on that number, though because I was playing something even riskier. There was an idea," Tony scoffed lightly as he returned his attention to his lap; he briefly wondered if Fury was trying to make him feel like crap, because it was working, "Starks knows this, called the Avengers initiative. The idea was to bring together a group of remarkable people to see if they could become something more. To see if they could work together when we needed them to, to fight the battles we never could." Stark looked back only to find Nick Fury gazing at him with a cold determination, "Phil Coulson died still believing in that idea. In heroes."

Tony threw himself from his chair and stalked out of the room, he didn't know where he was going he let his feet guide him until he came to the detention room. He paced the length of the floor coming to a rest on the railing overlooking the hatch on the floor. There were no such thing as super heroes; Phil's belief in them was foolishly placed. There were too many egos, his especially, and different sets of morals that were sure to clash. Tony Stark stood there brooding, his fury rising as he heard the distinctive footsteps of Steve Rogers. He wasn't really sure he wanted be anywhere near him at the moment but made no move to walk away,

"Was he married?"

"No. There was a cellist, I think." For a moment there was a drawn out quiet,

"I'm sorry; he seemed like a good man."

Stark scoffed at looked up at Rogers, "He was an idiot," he pushed himself off the railing,

"Why? For believing?"

"For taking on Loki alone." He backed up and walked the length of the walk,

"He was just doing his job." Rogers reply was calm as Tony scoffed again,

"He was out of his league. He should have waited. He should have…" Tony stopped and shook his head, eyes threatening to betray his overworked emotions. Steve heaved a sigh and walked around to him,

"Sometimes there isn't a way out, Tony." He said slowly and he didn't look bothered as Stark gave him an irritated glare,

"Right, I've heard that before." He snapped and he stalked past the captain,

"Is the first time you've lost a soldier?"

In a heartbeat Stark turned around, "We are not soldiers!" his anger threatened to break through. He wanted to blame someone, anyone at this point, but only found that the guilt was inside him, and he didn't want to hear Rogers' justification of Phil's death. "I'm not marching to Fury's fife."

"Neither am I, he's got the same blood on his hands that Loki does. But right now we've got to put that behind us and get this done." Tony said nothing and only turned his head to gaze at the spot where Phil's dead body had been; as he stared he felt the anger rise in his chest again. He wanted to get even with the black haired bastard; he wanted to make him suffer for what he had taken away.

"He made it personal." Stated Tony suddenly as his head snapped back to the captain, very slowly Loki's play was unfurling in his mind. He couldn't believe he hadn't seen it before; sickeningly the man was very much like himself. If he wasn't so pissed off Tony might have been actually impressed with the plan's complexity. Steve gave him a hard stare,

"That's not the point." Tony shook his head,

"That _is_ the point, that's Loki's point. He hit us all right where we live. Why?"

"To tear us apart." Steve replied simply, Tony could see he was slowly catching on,

"Yeah, divide and conquer is great but he knows he has to take us down to win, right? That's what he wants. He wants to be seen doing it," Tony's mind went three hundred miles a minute as Rogers started nodding in agreement, "He wants an audience," He felt like he was on a roll as he paced past Steve and down the walk,

"Right, I caught his act in Stuttgart." Tony gave him a half assed chuckle,

"Yeah, that was just previews, this is opening night. And Loki, He's a full-tilt diva, right? He wants flowers, he wants parades, he wants a monument built to the skies with his name plastered…"

Realization hit them both hard like a ton of bricks, "Son of a bitch." Without hesitation they took off out of the room, but as Tony passed by the spot where Phil had died he stopped very briefly. A small smile touched his face as he thanked the man for still believing in all of them, for still believing in heroes.

* * *

Emily hugged her knees to her chest as she sat on the ground. Loki was pacing the balcony outside waiting for the start of his invasion as she lay trapped in a cell created by the power of the cube. They were on the top floor of Stark tower, waiting for the inevitable while she prayed for rescue. But Loki's words still played in her mind, despite her best efforts, despite all of her training her dual nature would end up killing her. She gave a shuddering sigh, the Rune on her neck had yet to fade and it rendered her to the same level of power as a human child. She had never felt this weak, this helpless and she was starting to regret taking her powers for granted.

Her morality rate was also something to think about, she didn't know when her body would eventually tire out from the fight between her two natures. The thought scared her, death and the process of dying. She knew it was inevitable, death came for everyone sooner or later, but she always assumed she had a little more time than others due to her powers. But it was her powers that would end up killing her, she wanted laugh at the irony of it, Tony certainly would. She brooded for several minutes, considering her fate and such when a low whoosh came from outside. She looked up just in time to see red and gold blur shoot up to the top of the tower. Emily allowed hope to burst through her, if Tony was here than perhaps everyone was.

It was a tense few minutes as Tony touched down on his balcony outside, slowly he walked in as a complex machine removed his Iron Man suit. Loki wore a bemused smile as they walked in from either side of the room. Instantly Tony's eyes landed on her stranded in her little bubble, relief seemed to wash over him but he swiftly returned his attention to the demigod,

"Please tell me you're going to appeal to my humanity."

"Actually, I'm planning on threatening you." Remarked Tony smartly, he glanced over to her again and gave her a feeble smile, "You okay?" She nodded faintly,

"A little weak in the knees, but I'll be fine." Emily smirked at him as Loki irritably cut them off,

"You should have left your armor on for that."

Yeah," he turned to scurry down the steps that lead to a nearby bar, "It's seen a bit of mileage and you've got the glow stick of destiny. Would you like a drink?" Loki smirked at him,

"Stalling me won't change anything."

"No, no, threatening." Reprimanded the billionaire, he sauntered behind his bar and grabbed a glass and a nearby bottle of alcohol, "No drink? Are you sure?" Tony shrugged his shoulders as the demigod turned away to look out the window, "Well, I'm having one. I'd give you one Emily, but you being in the bubble of doom and underage, I don't think it's a good idea." Emily giggled softly as Tony poured himself a glass,

"The Chitauri are coming, nothing will change that." Muttered Loki angrily as he gazed out the window only to turn irritably back to the playboy, "What have I to fear?"

"The Avengers." Responded Stark, at the confused expression on the demigod's face the man shrugged nonchalantly "That's what we call ourselves. We're sort of like a team. 'Earth's mightiest heroes'- type thing."

"Yes, I've met them." Retorted Loki amusedly, Tony gave another shrug,

"Yeah, it takes us a while to get any traction; I'll give you that one. But let's do a head count, here." Emily had to admit Tony was working extremely well under all the pressure being put on him. She wouldn't have been able to act as calmly as he was as he took a swig of his drink, "Your brother, the demigod. A super soldier, a living legend who kind of lives up to the legend. A man with breath-taking anger management issues, a couple of master assassins, and you, big fella, have managed to piss every single one of them off. One even more so when he finds out you've kidnapped his girlfriend."

"That was the plan."

"Not a great plan." Remarked Tony as he took a sip of his drink. Emily watched in awe as he sauntered out from behind the bar, drink in hand, to face down the man who threatened their world. "Because when they come, and they will, they'll come for you."

"I have an army."

"We have Hulk." Emily scoffed, his army made no difference, there was no end to the giants rage so long as the Chitauri fueled it.

"Your beast has wandered off, Halfling!" snapped the demigod, he turned to her his eyes dark and threatening,

"You're missing the point," said Stark as he descended a small set of steps, "There's no throne, there is no version of this where you come out on top. Maybe your army comes, maybe it's too much but it's all on you." There was a moment where Loki looked a bit frightened, perhaps a little unsure of the wrath he had just incurred; Emily was watching closely enough to see it flicker across his face, "Because if we can't protect the Earth you can be damn well sure we'll avenge it." Tony's vow unsettled Loki but he was hiding it well beneath his snarky and haughty demeanor as he stalked up to the playboy menacingly

"How will your friends have time for me when their so busy fighting you." Emily gasped as Loki brought the tip of his spear to Starks mini reactor. There was a loud clink as the billionaire blinked at him dumbly, when Loki failed the second time he had the audacity to look confused, "This usually works…" he muttered,

"Yeah well, performance issues are not _uncommon_. One out of five" Said Stark innocently, the demigod clutched Tony by the throat and threw him to the ground, "JARVIS, anytime now." He muttered as he tried to scramble up. A mechanical whirring noise caught Emily's attention and she glanced over to her right to watch as a closet slowly opened. Loki grabbed Stark again and drug him to the window,

"You will all fall before me." He threatened before sending the playboy sailing over the edge,

"Deploy!" was his last desperate shout as he plummeted to the Earth below.

"TONY!" screamed out Emily, in mere seconds a large red blur sped past her and over edge towards Stark. Loki leaned over to watch only to find that the billionaire had on his newest suit and was hovering intimidatingly in the air,

"And there is one other person you pissed off," he called out as he came eye level to the demigod, "His name was Phil." With a fire of his replusor gun, Tony sent Loki flying onto his back at about the same time a loud shockwave echoed about the city. It shook the building and caught Stark's attention, before flying off he gave one last look at Emily, "Behave yourself, I'll be back for you, I promise."

Emily nodded and hugged her knees closer to her as she watched him fly off to do battle. Swallowing she closed her eyes to listen to the sound of screaming and gunfire. Then she felt herself rise off of the ground, her eyes snapped open with a breathless gasp only to find that Loki had taken control of her prison and was now towing her outside. With a flick of his spear he sent her up into the air and onto the roof of the tower sitting idly by the Portal. The black haired man phased into view next to her and pointed his weapon at the cube. From thin air he procured a long thin wire of electric blue energy and directed it towards her. Emily watched as it snaked through her cage to wrap around her hands and arms.

The demigod chuckled darkly, "Even if your friends find a way to shut off the portal, they will do so at the cost of your life." He sauntered closer to her as she kneeled on the ground, shaking badly, "That is your use to me, little witch. You shall be the reason they fail, they will fall to their humanity to save you. You are the ultimatum. There might be a chance your body will survive the process, I cannot say the same for your soul."

With that final threat aired he phased slowly out of view leaving the young woman alone to despair.

* * *

"You fell out of the sky."

The voice was hazy at best to Bruce's fog filled mind. The first thing that registered was the pain that ran through every muscle of his body. As he pried his eyes open and sat up he managed to look around, he had fallen onto a warehouse by the look of it. Shaking his head he dazedly glanced up at the old security guard, who regarded him calmly,

"Did I hurt anybody?" That was the first question he always asked after a change. He wanted, no needed, to know the body count. He needed to know how many lives he had ended to better his control and his conviction. The old man simply shrugged,

"There's nobody here to get hurt." He replied, "You did scare the hell out of some pigeons, though."

"Lucky…" muttered Bruce as he rubbed his temples trying to get a coherent thought through his brain. He didn't remember much of the change, unless he purposely triggered it he never would, and there were only flashes at what had happened afterwards. He saw snippets of Emily sitting calmly in the palm of the Other Guy's hand, smiling at him like always. There was no anger in the memory, only a perfect happiness at being noticed and accepted. The Other Guy rumbled contentedly as Bruce pressed for more but the green giant wasn't willing to share.

"Or just good aim. You were awake when you fell."

"You saw?"

"The whole thing. Right through the ceiling, big and green and buck-ass nude." The older gentleman stopped down to pick up a pile of clothes at his feet and tossed it down towards him, "Here, didn't think those would fit you until you shrunk down to a regular size feller."

Bruce wasted no time slipping on the pants, "Thank you." He said as he looked up, the old man just shrugged.

"Are you an alien?" The question caught Bruce off guard and he looked up confusedly at the security guard,

"What?"

"An alien, from outer space?"

"No."

"Well, then, son, you've got a condition."

Bruce stopped for a nano second and scoffed. With a slight nod he dressed quickly and stumbled down from the wreckage. He had no idea where he was but there had to be a way to get to New York. He'd be damned if he didn't see this through to the bitter end, Emily'd be disappointed in him if he didn't show up to help with the impending invasion. Briefly, he wondered if she was safe on the Helicarrier or heading straight for New York to help fight. He wished she wasn't, she could barely control her powers and it would put her in needless danger.

"How far are we from New York?"

"Thirty minutes, at best."

Bruce cursed silently, it would take too long to walk and he wasn't sure the city could last if he did. As he considered his options the old security guard placed as set of keys in his hands. Surprised he looked up into the aged face of the man, his eyes shining at him,

"I'm no fool, young man; I know what it's like to be in love. You go to New York, you fight your battles and you fight for her. Don't ever stop fighting for her until you've taken your last breath." There were no words between them in that moment, only silent understanding. Determined he ran out of the warehouse doors leaving the security guard behind to watch his retreating back knowingly.

* * *

_These next few chapters are gonna come easily because I've been writing them out for weeks now, so yeah. And I know in the next few chapters you're gonna hate me but don't worry Bruce Banner is going to get his happy ending, just wait and see._

_PapthlessSpore_

_UPDATE: Fixed Grammar_


	13. Anthem of the Angels

Trust in Me  
Avengers Fanfic  
Bruce Banner/ OC  
Chapter 12  
Anthem of the Angels

_I keep holding onto you  
But I can't bring you back to life  
Sing the anthem of the angels  
Then say the last goodbye_

_Anthem of the Angels- Breaking Benjamin_

* * *

_List of songs for the chapter:_

"_Dear Agony"-Breaking Benjamin  
"Anthem of the Angels" Breaking Benjamin  
"Angel"- Sarah Mclachlan_

* * *

Tony was really trying his best not to get shot out of the sky, falling from a good thirty stories up would have not felt all that pleasant. But as he weaved in and out of incoming fire, taking out Chitauri left and right, he found his mind wandering to poor Emily trapped in her bubble of doom. She looked weak and scared; she was never supposed to be a part of this but had been dragged in anyway. He cursed Loki, first Phil and now sweet Emily. The girl who knew how to make anyone smile, who was the sweetest and most caring person he had ever come to know. People like her appeared like a blue moon and he was going to do everything in his power to save her. For both her sanity, and Bruce's.

It didn't take a genius to see that when he fell for Emily, he fell hard. He was head over heels in love with her. In a matter of days every safety precaution he had was thrown out the window. And the calming effect she had on him was amazing; they understood each other so well. He knew what it was like for her, to control powers that could go off at any second, and instead of treating her differently he taught her how to embrace it, how to start controlling it.

Tony swerved right to avoid hitting building with several Chitauri on his back. It was chaos on the streets; the alien army was running wild firing upon the citizens. Bodies lay strew in the streets while survivors fought their way into buildings only to be trapped and killed. He was beginning to wonder how to get the aliens off his back so he could go help when a voice broke through his audio feed,

"Stark, we're on your three, headed northeast."

"What, did you stop for drive through?!" he snapped sarcastically, a cold sweat lined his forehead as he built speed, "Swing up Park, I'm going to lay them out for you." He sped by Stark tower and glimpsed Thor and Loki having it out. He didn't stop to watch a little too busy with his own Chitauri problem. Which was solved when he burst past Park and let Natasha and Clint blow them to pieces.

"Sir, we have more incoming." Advised his AI.

"Fine, let's keep them occupied…" he muttered as he twisted midair and fired his Replusars at them. One by one, they dropped like flies only to be replaced by three or four more. Pondering if there was ever going to be an end to them a loud mechanical groaning caught his attention. Stark glanced up only to feel his heart skip several beats at was coming through the portal. He never thought he'd live to see the day where space whales existed, and it's what it looked lie. A giant whale dressed in battle armor, coming from outer space. And to make matters worse they also acted as carriers for the ground troops of Loki's army. Where was Banner when you needed him?

"Stark, are you seeing this?" Tony was at a loss for words as he flew over the skyline trying to observe the giant Whale,

"Seeing, still working on believing." He replied as he sped in closer and closer, "Where's Banner, has he shown up yet?"

"Banner?"

"Just keep me posted." The Leviathan was covered head to toe in heavy thick armor with no weakness to be seen. Tony scoffed, there was always a weakness, "JARVIS, find me a soft spot." Tony engaged his thrusters to pull ahead of the beast and swung wide around a building to get in front of it. He hit it with everything he had, but his best missiles couldn't break through the heavy armor. The best he could thing he could think of was trying to catch its attention and lead it away from the more populated areas. But he wouldn't be able to outrun it forever. The thought occurred to him after he managed to get the beast to turn around and head straight for him,

"Well," he grumbled as he picked his brain for options. There was nothing more he could do; technology could only get him so far. For this particular problem they needed brute strength. Where the hell was Banner?! "We got its attention. What the hell was step two?" He didn't get to time think about it as he sped off with the giant creature hot on his tail. It moved surprisingly fast for something that size.

* * *

It was chaos, complete and utter pandemonium when Bruce rode into the war torn streets. He could feel the tension and fear in the air and could smell death all around him. He didn't even know if he had even arrived in time to help. When he killed the engine to the bike he was beheld by the ragtag group he had come to know. They all watched him warily as he stepped past rubble and debris,

"Well, this all seems horrible." He commented sarcastically. Natasha eyed him,

"Yeah, well, we could do with a little worse." Bruce gave her a weak smile in return,

"Where's Emily?" They all hesitated before Thor, looking no worse for wear, looked to the top of Stark tower.

"Loki has her trapped near the portal; his cage is powered by the Tesseract. It should release her when we shut it down." Bruce nodded grimly and closed his eyes, Emily; _his _Emily had been caught by that bastard. He didn't want to think about what he had done to her, a cold righteous fury built in his chest as he opened his eyes. The Other Guy was snarling in the back of his mind, demanding that he be set free so he could teach the demigod never to touch what was rightfully theirs.

"Stark, we've got him." Stated Captain Rogers into his ear piece, "Just like you said." They all seemed to wait expectantly as Tony replied through the ear piece; the only part he caught was when Stark shouted through to him,

"Suit up; I'm bringing the party to you!"

A loud roar brought his attention around to see Tony bank a building with a large creature close behind him. It was massive, wearing armor that looked nigh impenetrable, no wonder Tony was having problems, and this was a problem best solved with strength. And strength was something he had an abundance of. Determined Bruce turned on his heel and walked down the street,

"Doctor," Steve sounded a little unsure of what he was doing, "Now might be a really good time for you to get angry."

He chuckled and turned to look back at him, "That's my secret, Cap," confided the Doctor, his eyes flickered to the top of Stark tower. She was there, waiting for him and he wasn't about to disappoint her, "I'm always angry."

The change was smooth and flawless, green covering his skin in waves as his muscle definition broke through his shirt. In the mere moment where one took over the other they met. Bruce looked up at the Other Guy and they had a momentary understanding of one another. They were doing this together, for the world, for Emily. Then, for Bruce, everything went green.

Hulk wasted no time in bring down his fist on the snout of the Leviathan chasing Tony. His muscles bunched as he used his brute strength to bring it to a stop while the fall destroyed the armor protecting its exposed body. Stark quickly fired his weapons upon it sending the creature up in a ball of flame. The surrounding cries from the invasion brought everyone's attention as Hulk roared a fierce battle cry. They would come to fear him as all did, they would come to pay for what had been taken from him.

"Guys..." That's when he looked up; they came in droves out of the hole in the sky,

"Call it captain."

"Until we can close that portal, our top priority is containment." Ordered the blue clad man, "Barton, I want you up on that roof. Eyes on everything, call out patterns and strays. Stark, you've got the perimeter. Anything that gets more than three blocks out, you turn it back or you turn it to ash."

"Can you give me a lift?"

"Right, better clench up Legolas." Hulk watched as Tony grabbed the archer and sped away to the sky. His eyes followed him for a moment before landing to the top of the tall building. Emily, his pretty Emily was up there waiting for him.

"Hulk." His attention snapped the man who was giving out orders, "Smash."

The man had just become Hulks second favorite person as a devious grin spread across his face and he gave a threatening roar. It was easy to jump from the ground to the nearby buildings destroying all who came within his grasp. He jumped from one enemy to the next, a fire burning in his veins as his battle cry echoed through the air, loud enough for even his Emily to hear it.

* * *

Emily's head snapped up from her knees when she heard the fierce cry of the Hulk, her heart skipped several beats as she scrambled to look out onto the mayhem below. Her eyes picked out very few details as she scanned the battle, Tony seemed to be flying a perimeter trying to contain and stop any Chitauri from spreading further into the city. Thor was stopping droves of them from coming through the portal itself, cutting off huge numbers from the main army. And Hulk, she could see him now, jumping from one fight to the next without hesitation. With every victory he gave a cry, telling all to fear him for he was coming for them very soon. But his cries also reached to her, let her know that he was going to save her. She choked back a strangled sob; there was only one way out for her and Emily knew it wasn't going to be straight into his safe and comforting arms.

She felt more tears slide down her face, she never expected death to come for her so soon and now that it was lingering by her door she had very little time to consider the end. Would it hurt? What was after? More importantly, what would happen to Bruce? Thinking about his reaction afterwards made her cry harder, it would destroy him. To have happiness so close, to taste and touch it with his own hands, and then to have it torn from him. He would beg for death knowing it would never be granted. He would be made to suffer for the rest of his life wondering what could have been.

The battle raged on but the Chitauri seemed endless, and there was only so much her friends could take before they fell. All of their fighting would mean nothing unless they closed the portal. But Emily could do nothing but wait for the inevitable end to come. Doctor Selvig had come to, looking about in horror at the damage he had done. She said nothing to the man, his faults were his own. An explosion shook the air nearby and Emily turned to see a familiar head of red hair fly by her and roll onto the ground. Loki too had been thrown from his vehicle and sent crashing to Stark tower with the Hulk following close behind. She smiled as she heard his roar of defiance, she did not fear for her green giant knowing that he had the situation well in hand.

Natasha had scrambled to her feet and skidded to Emily, "Are you okay?" she questioned worriedly, the young Witch nodded her head as the agent took in her tear stained face. She knew something was amiss, Emily could see it in her eyes but her friend had no chance to question her as Doctor Selvig muttered from the edge of the Tower roof,

"The Scepter…" Both turned to him and watched as he gazed below, "The scepter, the energy. The Tesseract can't fight, but you can't protect against yourself." He panted as Natasha left Emily to crouch by the Doctor's side,

"It's not your fault," comforted the spy, "You didn't know what you were doing."

"Actually, I think I did." And there it was: the snag Loki had seen in his ultimate plan. He had somehow known that the cube could be shut off, whether by his own scepters power or any other solution, he had known. They would stop the invasion; Loki would pay for his crimes, but at the cost of her very life. A cost Emily was willing to pay, "I built in a safety to cut off their power source."

"Loki's Scepter." Natasha concluded, Doctor Selvig nodded as he looked back over the edge,

"It may be able to close the portal. And I'm looking right at it." He shook his head as the spy helped him to his feet and steadied him, "But," he clenched her shoulder tightly, "There is a price." He turned his gaze to Emily who returned with an even stare. Natasha Romanoff looked like she had just been punched in the gut,

"No..." she whispered in horror, her bloodstained face went pale as Emily gave her the bravest smile she could muster,

"It's okay Natasha," her voice wavered as tears brimmed her eyes, she felt them stream down her face in hot seamless streaks, "You have to, I know that, because if you don't Loki wins. Don't you understand he wants this? He wants you to be human; he wants you to be selfish."

"But, Emily I can't just-"

"You can, and you will because it is the right thing to do." Emily pointed down to the torn and demolished city, "Like a grain of sand washed on by the ocean, I am nothing compared to the vastness of the lives endangered here and around the world." Natasha sobbed, tears falling down her face as Emily heaved a deep breath, "Please Nat, don't throw away our freedom for one girl."

"You're not just a girl," protested the red haired woman as she wiped away her tears. Selvig patted her on the shoulder as she stumbled up to the witch, "You're Emily, you're sweet, you're understanding, you're beautiful. And there will be no one else like you in the world."

"There will be no world left if you don't do what is necessary."

There were no more words as the agent's shoulders shook with her repressed cries. Emily placed a ginger hand to the wall of her prison as the sobs echoed through the air. When she looked up at Emily again her eyes were set with grim determination,

"I'll make him pay, I swear it." She vowed, her expression was murderous as she stood up and wiped away the remnants of her tears. With a shuddering sigh Natasha gave her one last look before running to the edge of the building and jumping down below. She was barely gone a minute before a giant green blur slammed onto the roof. Emily half sobbed and half laughed as Hulk rolled his shoulders easily. His wonderfully green eyes landed on her and he was crouching down near her cage in the next heartbeat.

"Hi you," she whispered as she scooted closer to him, or as close as she possibly could, "Are you having fun?" She laughed at his mischievous grin and bright eyes. But he could see, just like Natasha had, that was something was wrong. She couldn't tell him, she didn't have the heart to; she couldn't bear to see the hurt in him. "I'm okay," she lied with a brightly fake smile, "I'm just shaken up, that's all." He didn't believe her, not one bit; she knew she'd never be able to fool him because he wasn't stupid.

"I wanted you to know," she whispered quietly to him, "That I'm going with you, after all this is done." She couldn't stop her tears, the expectancy and happiness on his face broke her down, "But, in order for that to happen, you have to help save the world. Then they'll see you're not a monster, far from it. You'll be a hero, you'll be my hero." He reached out to wipe away her tears only to be stopped by her cage, she chuckled weakly, "I'll be okay up here," she encouraged, "Go, and afterwards I'll be with you." He touched a forehead to the wall as she did the same, they shared a tender moment, unknowingly to him their last one together, and he was gone.

"I'll always be with you." She whispered to his resounding battle cry. Doctor Selvig was setting up his computer when Natasha came back with Loki's scepter in hand,

"Right at the crown." Advised the older man and Natasha warily touched the edge through the barrier. It fought her but it wasn't beyond her strength to push through,

"I can close it." She gritted through clenched teeth, however a slew of voices garbled her ear piece. She gave a shuddering gasp at the exchange, for moment Emily wondered what had happened but all was explained when Tony came rushing past with what looked to be a nuclear missile. He disappeared through the portal and for several tense seconds nothing happened, then they heard the explosion. All around her the Chitauri shut down like a machine without power. They had won but Natasha was hesitant to close the portal for Tony had yet to come back through.

Natasha was ordered to close the portal, regardless of Tony, and she reluctantly did as she was told. She touched the crown with the scepter and a loud thrum vibrated the air as the energy supporting the device died. Just as the tear in the sky shuddered to a close a red and silver form dropped through and plummeted to the ground. Emily didn't have the time to contemplate why Tony wasn't slowing his fall; she was on her hands and knees shaking violently. Her breathing came out in labored pants as her eyes widened from the pain she felt in her body.

Liquid fire raced through her veins, crushing her lungs and searing through her head and causing a burn of agony in her brain. She threw her head back and screamed in absolute torture. Every muscle in her body felt like it was being torn apart and crushed. She stopped breathing and collapsed onto the ground convulsing wildly. Her vision went white as she felt her soul began to tear apart at the seams leaving behind millions of wispy pieces. Eventually Emily stopped screaming. She lay face down on the ground her once blue eyes dull and glazed. Her long, beautiful hair lost its luster and shine. Her skin took on an ashen hue. Everything that was vibrant and good about Emily died in that moment. She lay there on the ground, a broken husk.

* * *

Tony had no idea death would be so damn white, in fact he was kind of disappointed. He was wondering where the hell he could get a paintball gun to liven the place up when he saw her. Emily, long brandy hair flowing down her back and icy blue eyes staring off into the distance, walking toward a shining star. He called out to her but she made no move to turn and acknowledge him. He ran towards her only to find that the distance between her and him had stretched. In that moment he knew that something was terribly wrong.

He was tiring as Emily got farther and farther away, disappearing into the distant light, her form slowly fading from view. A loud protest threatened to leave his mouth when he was suddenly pulled back violently and dumped back into his body. He awoke with a loud gasp,

"What the hell..." he sputtered as he took precious air into his lungs. The hulk, big and green, gave loud roar of victory, thumping his chest proudly. Thor and Steve were staring down at him with a mixture of relief and amusement, "What just happened?" They said nothing as small smiles crept up their faces, "Please tell me nobody kissed me." Every muscle in his body felt sore and used beyond their limit,

"We won." Concluded Steve as he fought to breathe as well, Tony felt undeniably happy as he threw his hands weakly in the air,

"Alright, yay!" he cheered feebly, "Hurray, good job guys. Let's just not come in tomorrow, let's just take a day." Tony felt a weak laugh leave his lips as he glanced over to Hulk who was observing him with amusement, "Have you ever tried Shwarma?" he pointed an inquiring finger at the Hulk who snorted at him while the other two men chuckled in relief, "There's a Shwarma joint about two blocks from here, I don't know what it is but I wanna try it."

"We're not finished yet." Replied Thor as his gaze followed up to Stark Tower,

"And then Shwarma after."

Everyone nodded in agreement; Steve helped Tony to his feet and the billionaire took the time to stretch his abused body. With a groan he felt several bones pop; when he was ready Hulk snatched him around the waist and jumped up onto the building, expertly he scaled it without expending any effort or putting Tony's life in danger. Thor followed right behind with Captain Rogers and all four landed on the demolished balcony. An arrow flew up past them and attached to the floor, bring up Clint Barton, who looked beaten and bruised.

They found Loki crawling up onto the stairs. When he turned around to rest he was met with five very pissed off heroes. He chuckled nervously,

"If it's all the same to you..." he tried for a weak smile, "I'll have that drink." Thor grunted as he towed his brother to his feet and clutched him hard by the shoulders. A loud thud came from outside, all turned to look as Natasha came running inside like a madwoman. Her hair was wild and the expression on her face murderous. Panting angrily she pulled back a fist as she ran up to Loki and let her aim fly true into the demigod's face. The force behind the punch ripped him free of Thor's iron grip and sent him sprawling onto the floor, everyone protested loudly as the spy leaped after him and grabbed him by his collar,

"You bastard!" she screamed as she slammed his head onto the floor, tears fell furiously from her eyes. Clint sprinted forward and pulled her off of the demigod, she struggled violently against his hold, "You killed her!" The room went silent. Everyone's eyes flickered back between the Agent and Loki, who smiled at her darkly,

"More red to add to your ledger…" was his cold reply. Clint let her go while Tony and Thor turned to run out the window, Hulks torn cry following close behind. Doctor Selvig was kneeling next to a very lifeless Emily, feeling for any remnants of a pulse, when all three of them landed on the roof. Wisely the aged man backed off as Hulk skidded to his knees and brought the witch into his large arms. His heartbroken cries tore through them all as he nudged her with a finger; he touched her hair, her face, anything to get a reaction only to have nothing in the end.

"She's alive," stated the doctor quietly as he came up to them, he too watched sadly as the Hulk clutched Emily close to his torso. A broken rumble escaped his chest, "but barely. Loki tied her life to the device, when it was shut off it took her energy with it."

"That son of a bitch." Muttered Tony angrily as Thor shook his head,

"A dishonorable act, even for Loki." The blonde haired demigod clapped his hand on Stark's shoulder, "I will make sure he gets his due punishment, even if I have to do it myself."

"You'll have to unbury him first, especially after Agent Romanoff gets done with him."

* * *

_A/N: Okay, so nothing much as really changed about this chapter. A few minor detail changes and what not. Now don't get me wrong, I sat down and thought long and hard about the next few chapters._

_So don't think I made the decision to cut the Tree of Life out of the story lightly. I'm not writing this story to satisfy critics who think I should consider my actions and not do what I doing because I need my ego stroked. If I wanted my ego preened I'd go to my mother for that. I'm doing this for my own self satisfaction. And mainly because the plot bunnies won't stop humping leg. My point is, I'm doing this story for me and I wanted to share this beautiful romance with the rest of the world. Is that so bad? The Chapters I cut were not my best work, which was a decision I made on my own. And yes, I'm my own worst critic. _

_Anyway, rant aside. This is chapter is only a fix up before I get into the next one. And just a heads up, nothing has changed, I only cut the tree of life from the story.._

_Pathless Spore_


	14. Broken

Trust in Me  
Avengers fanfic  
Bruce Banner/ OC  
Chapter 13  
Broken

_All that I'm after is a life full laughter  
as long as I'm laughing with you  
I think that all that still matters  
Is love ever after, after the life we've been through  
Cause I know there's no life after you_

_Life After You- Daughtry_

* * *

A month had come and gone so swiftly many couldn't believe that a battle for New York had taken place. It was a great victory for the people of Earth, a warning to all that the denizens of the planet would not be beaten so easily. Everyone celebrated their freedom, everyone save for Bruce Banner. There was never a moment where he had ever left Emily's side.

It had taken him three days to change back. He remembered lying curled on the cold hard floor, shivering and crying. He couldn't understand why he was crying; he couldn't understand why he felt so upset and heartbroken. The Other Guy had crawled to the back of his head, whimpering in grief, but when Bruce prodded for information he received a saddened silence. A sinking feeling settled in his stomach as he sat up and stretched. He realized he was in Stark tower; the bedroom was nice with a large four poster bed and a Grand Piano sitting in the corner. A pile of clothes was waiting for him on the bed which he dressed in quickly. When he was done JARVIS, Tony's infamous AI, informed him that Stark was waiting for him in his penthouse a floor above him, the AI then directed him to the nearest elevator.

The anxiety in his gut worsened when he stepped out of the claustrophobic transport and spotted a sullen looking Tony Stark. The way the man regarded a Bruce seemed almost guilty, as if the man had somehow failed him. He understood why in the next five minutes. He remembered going numb first, as Tony explained Emily's condition, then an indescribable pain brought tears to his eyes and spread throughout his body. He recalled turning around and running back to the elevator, desperately asking JARVIS where he could find Emily. When he burst through her door the sight that met him sent him spiraling to his knees next to her.

She lay broken; her once bright face was sunken and pale. She was unimaginably thin and, as he grasped her hand, cold. Tears brimmed his eyes and his shoulders shook with the effort to not openly cry. A few stray streaks slipped down his face as a dejected sob escaped his lips. He laid his head on the mattress and stayed there for days. As the time passed in a blurry haze he never left Emily's side for more than five minutes, if he could help it. He barely ate, barely slept; he spent every waking moment beside her, praying for a miracle. Most nights he lay his head in his hands and cried, he felt so helpless and, most of all, guilty. A part of him so desperately wished that it had been him instead of her.

The hours drug on until one day she opened her eyes. She had made no noise, no movement; she had only snapped them open to stare at the ceiling above her. Bruce had been sitting next to her bed brooding and he had glanced up at her for only a moment; he did a double take and softly called her name. She made no move to acknowledge him; it was like she had never heard him in the first place. Carefully he helped her sit up; Emily did not fight him as JARVIS informed Tony. The billionaire came running into the room and the two of them started to question her, but still she said nothing. Eyes that had held so much love and kindness were now dead and glazed.

As time passed Emily's condition barely improved. She spent most of her days sitting in her room in a plush high backed chair staring out of the window. Her eyes followed the movements in the streets, her mouth working like she wanted to say something. And as always, when Bruce looked at her, her eyes held a dead and glazed look to them. A tear slipped past his defenses at the sight. Broken, this beauty that had held so much life and kindness was now a shadow of what she used to be.

* * *

It had been quite some time since Bruce had been outside. As he stepped out of the front doors to Stark Tower he squinted up at the sun as its warmth touched his skin. The bright rays beat down on the recovering city and its people. Reconstruction of New York was slow; it would take months to even years to fully recover from the invasion. But its citizens were not without help; Tony was often seen flying around helping with a lot of heavy lifting and clearing debris. Even Natasha and Clint were getting into the spirit of things and helping out those without homes.

But today everyone would gather to give Thor a proper sendoff before he returned home. At first Bruce was a little reluctant to leave Emily alone, but Tony assured him Pepper would take care of her. The doctor eventually gave in. Thor's departure back to Asgard had been delayed at first because of Natasha Romanoff's merciless beating on his brother. Loki had to be hospitalized in order to recover from that ordeal. Along with taking Loki back to Asgard Thor had decreed that the Tesseract would be making the trip back with him as well, there were no arguments for that.

Bruce slipped into Tony's expensive car and they drove off down the street towards the rendezvous point, S.H.I.E.L.D agents had blocked it off to give the team some semblance of privacy. Everyone pulled up at about the same time, Clint with Natasha and Steve on his motorcycle soon after. When Thor came with his brother the man looked like an S&M fetish gone terribly wrong. He had bruises covering his face and he walked with a slight limp in his right leg. Carefully the cube was given to the blonde haired demigod and with a final nod good bye, and a brilliant flash of light, he and his brother were gone.

They all stood in silence for a moment before turning to one another to say their farewells,

"Doctor," Natasha handed him his bag that he had left on the Helicarrier. Grateful to have it back he nodded his thanks; unexpectedly the spy threw her arms around him and proceeded to give him an awkward hug. Flustered he shyly returned it. When she pulled away Natasha had tears threatening to fall, "Clint and I are going to stop by Stark Tower sometime to visit…" She choked a bit, a single clear stream running down her cheek. For those who knew Emily it was hard to talk about her, to remember what she had been and to see what she had become now was difficult.

With a final teary hug goodbye he watched as she turned and slid into Clint's car. After a moment of thought he turned and threw his bag in the back of Tony's car and got in. He closed his eyes against the wind as they sped away. The drive back to the Tower was silent for the most part; Tony had an enormous amount of work to do while Bruce contemplated Emily's condition. He didn't want to do anymore tests, the poor girl already had so many needles stuck in her that her arms was starting to bruise. Initial blood tests only told him what he already knew and he looked at brain scans only to throw them away in irritation. For the life of him he couldn't figure out what was wrong with Emily.

The pair pulled up in front of the Tower about thirty minutes later; tiredly Bruce slammed his door shut and stalked inside. The linoleum showed him his weary face as he looked down; he was so distracted he didn't notice the well-dressed woman in his path until he nearly mowed her to the floor. He caught her by the arms to stop her fall and started mumbling out apologies. He cursed himself for his carelessness as the woman shook her head full of graying brown hair. She looked to be in her early forties, she had brown eyes and a worn out visage. She wore an expensive dress with a set of pearls and black heels. She smiled at him weakly and brushed aside his excuses,

"Please, it's nothing." She gazed up at him softly, in the back of Bruce's mind something told him he should know this lady even though he had never met her in his life. There was something oddly familiar about her, like the way she carried herself and the way she talked. Frowning, he almost had to bite back another wave of "I'm Sorry." Then, right behind him, Tony came up to stand shoulder to shoulder with him.

"I'm surprised to see you here," he commented dryly, Bruce gave him a confused glance wondering how he even knew this woman, "Where's Drake?"

The two received an almost doleful smile," On business," she replied meekly; "He doesn't know I'm here." More confused than ever Bruce turned to Tony to ask who she was when he was cut off,

"Amelia this is Doctor Banner," The woman named Amelia nodded her head in greeting, "Bruce, this is Amelia Branson, Emily's mother."

* * *

The penthouse level had an awkward and tense air about it; they sat around his coffee table waiting for someone, anyone to break the silence. Tony had decided that the following conversation was better off done upstairs, so when Bruce started to lay into poor Amelia they wouldn't attract any attention and he could Hulk out without any problems. And it was surprising really; the Doctor was really holding it together pretty well, besides the fact that Tony could almost taste the animosity coming off of him. Amelia could see it too, she fidgeted slightly in her seat with a cup of tea in her hands, Bruce had hit the caffeine early and Tony was playing with his Bacardi and Coke mix. Surprisingly it was Amelia who spoke first,

"Emily must have told you about me for you to treat me so callously, Doctor Banner."

"Yes." He was glaring at the coffee table, the can of Pepsi clutched in his hand. It was taking every last bit of effort not to blow up on this woman like he wanted to. It was also obvious that Amelia knew she was walking down a very dangerous path, "Why are you here?" snapped Bruce; he turned his glare up at Amelia who tried to shrink back into her chair. She swallowed nervously and looked down into her lap,

"I wanted to see if Emily was here." She muttered weakly, Tony watched as Bruce clenched the can in his hand harder. The metal dented slightly as an irritated snort came out him,

"Why would you deserve to see her after all you've done?" his tone turned cold as Amelia swallowed hardly,

"I don't," she looked up at him sadly her brown eyes weak and beaten, "I will not deny I am a terrible Mother, at a time there was a chance for Emily to go and live with her Father. She would have been accepted and happy, but I loved her too much and selfishly kept her to myself. I tried to protect her, but she still paid the price for my mistake."

Amelia Branson gazed imploringly at Bruce who had turned away from the woman, "Doctor Banner, if I could reverse time and do things differently I would in a heartbeat." Tony didn't know whether to be angry with her or to feel sorry for her. Bruce was obviously thinking the same thing because he looked down at the ruined Pepsi can in his hand and sighed,

"I am not the one to judge you," he replied in a low voice. Slowly he stood and looked down at Amelia with hard eyes, "If you want to see your daughter, fine." The woman opened her mouth to thank him but was stopped by his hand, "You're not going to like what you see." He warned.

* * *

"Emily," Amelia brushed past Bruce as soon as the door opened. She swiftly fell to her knees and grasped her daughter's pale and thin hands. Emily made no move to notice her mother. Her eyes were trained on the activity happening outside. Mrs. Branson sobbed and lay in her head in her child's lap, "Oh, Emily…" she wept sadly, "My sweet daughter, what's happened to you?" Pleading eyes turned to Bruce and he found himself unable to look into them.

He shoved his hands into his pockets and awkwardly averted his gaze. There were no words as Amelia spent the rest of her tears. Loving hands caressed Emily's face until she stood. Mrs. Branson sighed, the room was eerily quiet.

"There may be someone who can help her."

"Who?" Tony leaned up against the doorframe. Bruce made himself comfortable on the bed as Amelia circled to the window.

"Before I say I have to tell you something about Emily." They waited patiently for the older woman to muster her courage. Brown eyes turned around and gazed balefully at them, "My daughter isn't entirely….human."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Bruce replied coldly. He couldn't believe she had openly insulted her daughter who sat not five feet from her. Amelia simply shook her head,

"You misunderstand me; Emily is not entirely human because her father isn't human to begin with. Twenty years ago I had what every little girl dreamed of. I was married to a good looking, rich man who had the means to take care of my every whim and need. But I wasn't happy." Amelia sighed and returned to her daughter's side, "There was something missing from my life I couldn't comprehend. I didn't know what it was until I met him."

Amelia's eyes turned dreamy, a smile touching her face, "He was beautiful, so absolutely stunning it was hard to find words. In that moment I knew the feeling of falling irrevocably in love. But, I could not be with him. I had my life and he had his, we could preach to the stars all we wanted but it could never be. Before he left he gave me one final gift." She looked down at Emily and a single tear ran down her cheek, "He gave me Emily."

"What exactly was Emily's father?" Inquired Bruce quietly; for a moment the older woman didn't answer. She ran her lithe fingers through Emily's hair, a sad smile on her face,

"You've seen many strange things, yes?" Both men nodded, "Parallel to this world is another, where it is perpetual darkness. There is no sunrise and for many, no escape. Many creatures inhabit that place, among them Emily's other relatives. They are known as the Fae. Extremely beautiful, unimaginably wise, yet stubborn, prideful, and selfish. Their race has been on Earth for eons."

"Fae, like as in elves?" Tony scoffed and rolled his eyes. Amelia gave him a playful smirk,

"Perhaps you'll need to see with your own eyes," Around her neck she grabbed a thin silver chain, "When Emily was born there were dangers beyond the wrath of my husband, dangers that my lover could only see. At first he wanted to take Emily away, to better protect her. I refused, she was precious to me. So Instead his sister stayed behind to better care for her when I could not."

"Emily's aunt," concluded Bruce, "She talked of her often." Amelia frowned and sighed. She looked as if she wanted to say something but choose to keep it to herself.

"I believe she can help."

"And so I can." Everyone turned to the door in a heartbeat. Tony gave a cry of shock and stumbled away from a woman who had appeared in the doorway. She was tall, thin, and predatory. Her violet eyes observed them all with cold amusement. Her long white hair was pulled back to reveal long pointed ears. "You called for me, _Nathair_?"

She stepped into the room, the folds of her green tunic swaying behind her. She commanded attention with her terrifying beauty. Bruce felt cold on the inside and averted his eyes quickly. She strode across the floor like a queen and nearly pushed Amelia out of her way as she came too Emily's side. Her long, lithe fingers caressed her niece's pale and gaunt face. To Bruce's surprise she flinched ever so slightly and tried to pull away. It was the first of any real reaction anyone had gotten out of Emily, and it didn't make him feel right. Why would she recoil from a person she cared so much about, whom she worshipped so thoroughly?

It didn't make sense, but if the white haired woman was disturbed by this action she hid it well. For several minutes she whispered to Emily in another language, searching her face and eyes. Eventually she looked up at Amelia and frowned. Her eyes narrowed dangerously,

"There is a considerable amount of damage done to her soul," she explained coldly, "It will take weeks for the wounds to heal. Until the damage is repaired she is like an empty shell, she'll need care you cannot provide."

"Hold on!" Tony had managed to recover from his shock and was now glaring at the woman who had intruded upon his hospitality, "This is my house, and you can't just come in and make yourself comfortable whenever you feel like it. Don't you need permission to be in here anyway?"

"I gained permission when the _Nathair _invited me here." Violet eyes burned hotly. With that said she turned, glared at Amelia, brushed past Tony, and went off to find a room of her own. The billionaire could only stare blankly at the door,

"You _invited_ her here!" he hissed as he turned swiftly. Bruce rubbed his neck nervously, there was something extremely off about that woman. She didn't make him feel at all comfortable. "Who is she?"

"That is Maeve, Emily's aunt. As of now she is the only one who can help my daughter." Amelia frowned and clasped her hands, "_Nathair_: it means snake in her language, but she is the snake not I." Her gaze turned to Bruce, hardened and cautious, "I wasn't entirely truthful when I said I kept Emily for my own selfish reasons. While, in part, that is true, the real reason I kept reason was because of Maeve. She is not to be trusted, and whatever happens, you must not leave her alone with Emily."

* * *

_A/N: Nothing much about this chapter has changed. Only ideas and concepts. Maeve is still an antagonist in this story. Please, please, please, leave CONSTRUCTIVE criticism in the review box. I worked extremely hard on this. As for the description for the Unseen Realm, I made it up, I'll change it when the new Thor movie comes out and I have a better idea on what it looks like._

_PathlessSpore_


	15. The Fae

Trust in Me  
Avengers fanfic  
Bruce Banner/ OC  
Chapter 14  
The Fae

_It may sound absurd, but don't be naïve  
Even heroes have the right to bleed  
I may be disturbed, but won't you concede  
Even heroes have the right to dream  
and it's not easy to be me_

_Superman-Five for Fighting_

* * *

Maeve was a constant presence in Stark Tower. Most of the time she kept to her room on the thirty second floor; the only time Bruce ever saw her was when she was with Emily. But that didn't mean she wasn't there. The day she arrived to take care of her niece the atmosphere went from pleasant to uncomfortable and eerie. Maeve made everyone nervous, even the Other Guy. He was smart enough to realize that she was something he couldn't defeat with his fists. He watched her warily from the other side of his cage, looking out through Bruce's eyes. Amelia's warning to never leave Maeve alone with Emily echoed through his mind.

Emily's progress was slow in the first week. The Fae woman had spent time talking to Emily in her strange language with Bruce never too far away. Maeve seemed coldly amused by Bruce's protective instincts. The first time he watched her she gave him a snake like smile, her eyes daring him to provoke her. He had to clench his fists tight in order to reign in his control. She was tempting him into a fight and he wasn't going to give her the satisfaction of getting under his skin.

In the second week Maeve had managed to convince Emily to leave her chair by the picture window. The witch was now taken to wandering around Stark Tower, Tony immediately ordered JARVIS to keep a close and constant watch on her. Some color had returned to Emily's face and her hair had gained some shine again. She was even eating, a healthy and wholesome diet brought to her three times a day.

By the time the third and fourth week passed Emily had gained weight, she no longer looked ashen and dead. More color had returned to her brandy hair but her eyes still held that glazed over look. She spent more time out of her room and in the penthouse with the Pepper or Tony. Occasionally she was seen with her mother in the kitchen, or with Maeve on the thirty second floor.

Finally, after a month of recovery Emily had found her way to Bruce's side. The change started after he had cut his hair. It had gotten too long for his taste. He was more than happy to let Pepper cut it for him, but Tony, being the helpful man that he was, suggested he go see a professional stylist instead. The said billionaire ended up sleeping on the couch that night.

"Mr. Banner," Bruce snapped out of his reverie and glanced at the female stylist in the mirror. She smiled at him, "what do you think?" His hair was cut short and shaped nicely. More spots of gray peppered it, making him appear older than he was. He nodded and thanked the woman, as he went to the desk to pay her he felt a small tug on his sleeve. Startled he looked down and met the eyes of a young boy with black hair.

"Oh, wow!" the kid exclaimed, there was a look of awe in his face, "You're the Hulk! That's so cool!" Bruce was rendered speechless for a moment. He didn't know how to react to this kind of attention. The boy smiled nervously at him and dug around in his jacket before procuring a small note book and a pen,

"Can I have your autograph?" he asked shyly, "Please?"

Bruce chuckled and nodded, "Sure," quickly he scribbled down his name. The look of pure joy on his face was enough to make the doctor smile. Excitedly, the boy thanked him and ran over to his mother sitting nearby. He showed her his prize, to which she looked up at him. For a brief second he expected to see her glare, but she simply nodded her head and turned to her son.

Finally Bruce left the establishment and turned to walk down the street. He kept his head ducked down, people passing by in seamless faces. No one paid him any mind as he made his way home. The boy kept coming back to him. His young face beaming up at him in admiration. He believed that Bruce was some kind of superhero; that having the Hulk was the greatest thing in the world.

There was nothing great about it, thought Bruce bitterly as he walked inside Stark Tower; there was nothing great about having to fear yourself. He envied the boy for his innocence; he wished he could have that same outlook on life. As Bruce stepped into the claustrophobic elevator he wished Emily could tell him everything would be okay. He wished she was there to tell him something to ease his mind. A loud ding brought his attention to the elevator doors opening and he stepped into the hallway and headed off towards the kitchen. When he reached the door and slipped through he found that everyone was gathered at the table eating lunch.

Tony and Pepper sat side by side while Amelia helped Emily with her meal. The young girl had gotten the hang of eating by herself, after only a few weeks. She could perform basic human functions and no longer needed assistance with anything strenuous. She still wasn't really herself, but it was progress. Everyone looked up at his entrance,

"I like it, Bruce," commented Pepper sincerely. Tony nodded with a mouthful of food,

"Very casual, if you're going for the old and unavailable look. But you know, some woman are into older men-" He grunted as Pepper elbowed him hard in the gut, "What?" She just rolled her eyes at him and went back to her lunch, "What did I do?"

With a shake of his head Bruce went to sit down and nearly plowed over Emily in the process. She stumbled back but prevented her fall by grabbing onto Bruce's jacket. He clasped her wrists as she stared up at him with blank eyes. The room went silent. Very slowly lithe fingers traveled up to his hair. She gave him an almost quizzical look. Bruce smiled a bit,

"Yes, I got it cut." He smirked at her confused and near accusing glare. Like she was upset he had cut it without her permission. This was a first, acknowledgement of differences in a person. Most of the time it had been simply her presence by a person she knew. Perhaps Maeve had made more progress than she had let on. Emily tried to work her mouth into a smile but gave up in the end. She wandered back to her chair to resume eating; the moment was over before it had ever really begun.

After that, she spent more time around him. Emily followed Bruce everywhere she could. She would sit quietly with him in a lab while he worked. If he was in the library she would watch activity out the window. Every time he moved she was right there.

One summer day, while the sun drifted in through the windows, Bruce was bringing Emily her breakfast. She hadn't looked so well the night before and had been sent to bed early. He didn't want her to strain herself too much; she had been recovering from her ordeal so well. Emily's bedroom door hissed open, as the doctor took a step in he opened his mouth to greet the witch. What he saw stopped him in his tracks. The tray fell to the floor with a loud clatter, startling Maeve who had been gripping Emily's head with her fingers. The girl whimpered in pain and slumped into her chair as her Aunt glared up at him.

Bruce's vision was starting to go green; his fists were clenched at his side. In the span of a few seconds he was across the room staring down the Fae woman. "Get away from her." He spat vehemently, Maeve smirked at him but didn't move. Emily sniffled slightly, the doctor was at her side in an instant running his hand along her arm, "What did you do to her!" he demanded, "Are you responsible for her illness yesterday?"

"I am trying to help my niece, Doctor Banner," she replied calmly bring a snarl to Bruce's face,

"Somehow I doubt that." When he received nothing he angrily he stood to his full height and forced the woman away from Emily, "I don't know what you're game is," he snapped, "but if you want her, you'll have to go through me first. And I won't give her up without a fight!"

He wouldn't lose her again; that ice cold bitch would have to pry Emily from his dead carcass. Maeve turned away and paced the length of the floor,

"Tell me, Doctor, what do you know of the Fae?"

The sudden change in subject caught him off guard, but made him no less wary. Suspiciously he eyed the woman, "Not a thing."

She scoffed, "That is not surprising; my people are, after all, a lost piece of history. Then let me ask you this," she faced him, her long silver white hair flowing over her shoulders, "Do you know of the war between Heaven and Hell?"

"Assuming there is a Heaven and Hell." Commented Bruce dryly. Maeve merely smiled,

"If it pleases you," she stopped her pacing and sat at the edge of Emily's bed, "Let me tell you a bedtime story, Doctor Banner. Long ago, the greatest of God's angels sought to overthrow Him, you know him as Lucifer. Heaven split into two sides and after the war Lucifer and his followers were thrown into Hell for their crimes."

"Everyone knows that story," Bruce retorted coldly, not that he appreciated the thought of deity that took attendance. Maeve gave him an irritated sigh,

"But not everyone knows the fate of the Angels who chose not to fight. They believed that war was not the answer and let the two sides settle their differences. God was not pleased that these Angels did not make their allegiances known. However, since they did not side with the Dark Prince they were banished from Heaven and thrown to Earth. It was there they would make their own way and earn their way back to His side, as the mortals did."

"What has that have to do with the Fae" inquired Bruce irritably. The change was instant, one moment Maeve gave nothing away in her face, having erected an ice cold mask. Then next she was sneering at him, her eyes seemed blaze violently.

"Everything!" she hissed, she rose from the bed and stalked over to Bruce, "It has everything to do with us! For eons my people have been living a half life on this wretched plane of existence unable to return home!"

Horrible realization settled over Bruce as more and more of Maeve's façade began to break down. It was like watching porcelain crack, and it was slowly chipping away to reveal the ugly behind it. "You were there."

Sadness finally reached her old, violet eyes, "Yes, I remember our fall. Nine days and nine nights, then we were alone in a world that feared us. My brother and I are relics of our time; others chose to fade as the years passed on." Maeve must have realized she was showing emotions because she swiftly turned away from Bruce, "I want to go home, Doctor Banner, and my niece has the ability to make it possible."

When she turned around, the ice mask was back. Nothing was revealed in her eyes or expression. It didn't make him feel right. Maeve's gaze flicked past him and to Emily, a hungry look appeared in them. Protectively he stepped in her line of sight, she smirked at him,

"I will get home, by whatever means necessary."

With a swish of her tunic she left the room. Bruce could only watch her leave; when she was gone he turned to Emily and quickly looked her over. Nothing seemed to be wrong with her. She only seemed to be frightened at Maeve's actions.

And her threat was not lost on Bruce. She'd use her niece to get what she wanted, and he was going to do his damndest stop her.

* * *

_**A/N: Another update! Woohoo! Anyway, I don't have anything profound to say about this chapter. All that I ask is that you leave CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM!**_

_**Thanks!**_

_**Pathless Spore**_


	16. Stolen

Trust in Me  
Avengers Fanfiction  
Bruce Banner/OC  
Chapter 15  
Stolen

_I'm lost without you_  
_And there's nothing I can do_  
_You're the one I can't go without_  
_If I ain't holding on to you then I'll be holding out forever_

_I've got you now and_  
_I'm not letting go of you_  
_Never be together long enough_  
_'Cause every moment I'm with you_  
_It's like I'm holding on to heaven_

_Holding onto Heaven- Nickelback_

* * *

Bruce and Tony were sitting at the bar each with a drink in their hands. The billionaire playboy clutched the cold glass in his hands. The doctor glanced back over his shoulder at Emily, who sat humming on the couch,

"Maeve's up to something, Tony." He said. Stark nodded in agreement,

"I knew it from the moment she walked in. There's something not right about her." A long, tense silence followed, "I wish I would have noticed earlier, but she's been messing with JARVIS's video feed." Tony cursed under his breath and downed his drink in one gulp. Bruce had brought Maeve's actions to the playboy as soon as he could. Tony didn't deny it; he had seen the footage from JARVIS's security cameras.

"I'm not leaving her alone, not after what just happened." Muttered Bruce angrily, he involuntarily squeezed the glass in his hands. It chipped slightly,

"Hey, careful with the hardware," scolded Tony taking away the drink before he could shatter it, "They're not cheap, and I'm not asking you to leave Emily alone. Actually I'd be upset if you did. We just need to figure out a way to find out what _she _is up to."

"Have you tried her room?"

Tony shook his head forlornly, "As I said, she's blocking the feed, I can't even see in there."

"Ever thought about going in?" remarked Bruce sarcastically earning him a glare from Stark,

"Of course, but she's done something to the door, her weird Magickal shit. It won't open for me."

The doctor sighed through his nose; the only thing he was sure of was Maeve's intent. She wanted to go back to Heaven, a place her people hadn't been to since the war with Lucifer.

"So, heaven, huh?" remarked Tony casually. There was sarcasm in his tone though he tried to hide it. It didn't surprise Bruce that his friend would blow off such a controversial topic. Even after what he had seen. "That's got to take some serious power to pull off."

"Breaking dimensional barriers isn't easy, even with Maeve's level of power. I think that's why she wants Emily," Bruce tapped his chin thoughtfully and looked back at the witch, "She's strong, if Maeve can somehow siphon Emily's Magick she could increase her abilities by at least tenfold."

Tony cursed again and poured himself another drink, "She could do anything she wants at that point,"

"All the more reason to keep her away from Emily until she's recovered enough."

Stark scoffed, "Easier said than done, my friend." He polished off that drink in one shot as well, "But I'll be damned if I give up without a fight. I'll see if we can get Natasha and Clint to live with us, at least until we know Maeve isn't threat anymore. Having Barton's eyes around will be useful and we'll need more people to set up watch. Emily will not be left alone for any reason."

Bruce nodded, "I'll talk to Amelia, she's spent more time around the Fae than we have, she might know something that can reign in her sister-in-law."

* * *

"Yes, I understand," Amelia Branson had joined Bruce in the penthouse at his request. She sat with her daughter, stroking her hair. The young woman was leaning into her mother, her eyes closed in contentment. "Cold Iron, it's poisonous to the Fae, which is why you hardly see Maeve out of her room, Stark Tower is made of nothing but Iron, not to mention all the electronics here."

Bruce sat across from the two, his elbows resting on his knees. He nodded, "Anything else?"

"Rowan, it's particularly useful when breaking their Glamour, their Illusion Spells. Tony also has the power to banish her from his house. While I invited her here, Maeve is in his household therefore has to listen to his command. If he rescinds her invitation she will be immediately thrown from the Tower."

It was silent as Bruce filed away the information. Every bit of knowledge he had was something to counter Maeve. Nothing could be taken for granted. "Thank you," Amelia smiled at him and nodded; she leaned down and kissed her daughter on the head before standing to leave.

Emily hummed happily to herself for several minutes as Bruce lost himself deep in thought. He hardly noticed that she had moved from her spot to sit next to him. When he did she was leaning her head into his arm, her eyes closed and a smile on her face. She sighed; Bruce smirked and wrapped an arm around her waist,

"I won't let her hurt you," he whispered softly into her hair, placing a gentle kiss there, "I promise." They sat together in comfortable silence; he wanted to kick Maeve out right away. It was logical to just remove the threat instantly. The problem was the Fae woman had the knowledge to help Emily. As much as he hated to admit it, they needed her. And she knew it.

Bruce wondered if there was another way to help Emily. Someone else who could take a look inside and repair what damage was left. Then solution hit him hard in the face,

"JARVIS?"

"Yes, Master Bruce?"

"Can you get Tony up here, it's important."

"Right away, sir." Tony was coming out of the elevator in a rush; quickly he glanced around the room for any threat. He was barely across the floor when Bruce blurted out,

"Charles Xavier."

The billionaire knitted his eyebrows in confusion, "That guy in the wheelchair who advocates Mutant Rights?"

"Yes, he's head of school for kids with special powers; he's also a powerful Psychic." Realization dawned on Stark's face instantly,

"If he could take a look at Emily and help her—"

Bruce nodded as he got up and crossed the room, "We won't need Maeve."

"Have you ever heard of the expression, 'Speak of the devil and he shall appear?'" Everyone spun around to see Maeve standing over her niece's shoulder. She wore a smirk on her face, her violet eyes dancing in cold amusement. Emily was trying to shrink back into her chair as her aunt played with her hair. "I ignored my name the first few times, but now I think you are trying test me, Doctor Banner."

Green crossed his vision in seconds. He snarled savagely and stalked back to Emily. The two squared off, sizing each other up. The Other Guy was in the back of his mind, begging to be let out. He wanted to pound this woman's face in.

"Don't trifle with me, mortal," Maeve hissed, her eyes were narrowed and her mouth set into a sneer. Bruce clenched his fists; they were in each other's face now,

"I could say the same to you." He countered coldly. They stared at each other for several tense minutes. Bruce refused to look away first; he would not be intimated by this woman. Finally, she scoffed and backed away. One moment she was there, when he blinked she was gone.

The Other Guy scowled, he had looked forward to a fight and that woman had run away like a coward. Bruce stilled, his heart beating rapidly. He'd by lying if he said he wasn't looking for a fight with Maeve. He wanted to ram his fist into her face so badly it actually hurt. It was no wonder his nerves were already on edge, that woman pushed him to his absolute limit.

Suddenly, he felt Emily's hands reach up around his neck. Bruce froze as she laid her head against his chest and hummed softly. She played with his hair, comfort radiated from every pore of her body. Instantly the Other Guy calmed down, a content growl rumbled from deep within his chest. He slipped his arms around her waist and brought her closer. Bruce barely noticed Tony had left the room to let the two be in amicable silence.

* * *

Natasha and Clint were more than happy to live at Stark Tower. When the situation had been explained they packed immediately and were walking through the front doors within the hour. In the mornings, Emily would spend time with Natasha and Clint. Emily recognized the spy as soon as she walked in the room and seemed happy to have her older sister back. Natasha would take Emily outside to walk around the city, much to Bruce's chagrin. When they came back in the afternoon Natasha and Clint would then trade out with Tony and Pepper. Evenings were spent with her mother, Amelia who would take the time to brush out Emily's long hair.

Nights were Bruce's time to watch over her. He spent most of his watch in the chair beside her bed, a book in his hand. With his glasses perched on his nose he would occasionally glance at her snoring softly. Sometimes, when she demanded it of him, he crawled in bed next to her. He brought her into his chest and held her in his arms as she lay sleeping.

Nearly a week had passed since Natasha and Clint had arrived. Maeve had yet to show her face and any attempt to peer into the room she was housed in was foiled. Tony had contacted Xavier's School for Gifted Children in hopes of talking personally to the man. He had been denied at first, Charles was away at a meeting. The woman at the other end of the phone offered to come herself but Tony had insisted it be Xavier that meet with Emily.

Emily, who looked better than she had been in a few weeks, was sitting at the kitchen table in the dining room. She was joined by Amelia, Tony, Natasha and Clint. They were eating and laughing when Bruce walked in that morning. He was running on three hours of sleep, a hungry stomach had bade him to get out of bed. He shuffled in wearing a faded T-shirt and sweatpants, his mind begging for a cup of coffee.

"Good morning, gorgeous." Commented Tony dryly, Bruce scowled at him and went straight for the coffee maker. When he had a hot cup in his hand he sat down next to Emily. She gave him one of her smiles and returned to her food.

"Sir," JARVIS's smooth voice filtered through the speaker above them, "A Charles Xavier is on the line, shall I patch him through?"

"Yes!" Tony straightened; it was silent for a moment. Then—

"Mr. Stark?"

"I'm here!" replied Tony evenly, the room had gone still. Even Emily seemed to know the importance of the phone call,

"You'll have to forgive me for my late reply; I have been very busy the past few days."

"It's no problem, sir. I'm just glad you could call back."

"Now, what do you require of me, Mr. Stark?"

It was silent for a moment, "It's hard to put into words. You've seen the news and stories about the attack on New York?"

"Yes, I have"

"While we did save the city, we lost a lot of lives and a lot of people were hurt. Including one of our own." Bruce snuck a glance at Tony, he shoved off his accusing glare and returned his attention to the speaker above him, "The problem is there's no physical damage, from what we've been told it's spiritual."

"Forgive me for not asking earlier, who is hurt?"

"Her name is Emily Branson, she's a half Fae witch."

"I see, and who offered the diagnosis?"

"Her aunt, she's been here for over a month helping Emily recover at the request of her mother."

Silence, Bruce felt his heart start to beat rapidly. "You do not trust this relative." The statement caught everyone off guard. Bruce had to remind himself that Charles Xavier was an extremely intelligent man. Tony did not deny it,

"No, we don't. There is something not right about her. We're hoping that if you can help fix whatever damage is left we can remove the Aunt."

"I see, then I will make preparations to leave as soon as possible. You may expect me within the next day or so."

"Thank you so much, sir." Tony didn't try to hide the relief in his voice. Calm settled over Bruce as her leaned over to brush his lips against Emily's forehead. One more day, he prayed that they would no longer need Maeve.

* * *

Emily's room was dark save for the bedside lamp, outside the sound of car horns split through the night. Curled onto the bed, faces painted in peaceful calm, were Bruce and Emily. The young witch lay on her side, her back against his chest. His arms were wrapped around her body in a comforting and safe cocoon with his nose in her hair. Emily snored softly and snuggled deeper into him. A smile touched Bruce's face.

It stayed like so, silent and tranquil, until something in the room made the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. Instantly he was awake, bolting into an upright position. Emily groaned in discomfort and tried to reach for him. Brown eyes quickly scanned the room, noting that it was slowly getting colder. Then, he saw her.

Maeve looked evil beyond all recognition. Her violet eyes were now coal-black, her pale face set into an inhuman snarl. She stood in the shadows, hate etched into every line of her face. Bruce's pulse skyrocketed; she sneered at him and snapped her fingers.

Bruce was thrown from the bed and through the wall. A resounding crash echoed throughout the tower. The doctor groaned and tried to push himself up from the floor. The Other Guy roared in the back of his mind, now fighting Bruce for control. He stilled when he heard someone scream. It sounded like Emily. In a flash he was on his feet and running to the hole in the wall.

Maeve was dragging Emily out of her bed by her hair. The witch was howling in terror and pain, trying to fight her demonic aunt. She struggled with all her might, with a snarl the Fae woman hit Emily in the back of the head. She slumped over onto the floor.

"No!" screamed Bruce, he clenched his head as the Other Guy began to fight even harder. "I won't let you!" Maeve sneered again and with another snap of her fingers, she and Emily disappeared.

Bruce was on the brink of losing control, this couldn't be happening. He refused to let this happen. Green muscle definition broke through his shirt as he threw his head back and let out a cry. From behind him he heard someone enter the room; he was in too much pain to care. He wouldn't lose her, not again. He'd save her, no matter what it took.

Then, green crossed his vision and he lost himself to the rage.

* * *

_**A/N: I think I have an unhealthy obsession for Cliffhangers.**_

_***nudge nudge wink wink* ah, come on, X-men reference. It was my Mother's idea really and it was so good it was a crime not to put it in.**_

_**I'm also changing themes for Characters:**_

_** 1) Emily's theme is still Molde canticle by Sissel**_

_**2) Bruce's theme has been changed to Monster by Skillet.**_

_**3) Their theme together has been changed to Holding onto Heaven by Nickelback**_

_**Remember, CONSTRUCTIVE criticism.**_

_**PathlessSpore**_


	17. Father

Trust in Me  
Avengers Fanfiction  
Bruce Banner/OC  
Chapter 16  
Father

_And I'd fight for you  
I'd lie, it's true  
Give my life for you  
You know I'd always come for you_

_I'd come for you - Nickelback_

* * *

Tony was flying across New York City in a panic. He had been torn from a fitful sleep by a loud thunderous crash that nearly shook the whole Tower. He arrived at the scene of the commotion just in time to see an inhuman Maeve kidnap Emily. In the end it had taken Tony Stark five minutes to get ready. While Bruce had hulked out within the span of seconds Tony actually had to take the time to get to his penthouse and into his Iron Man suit. Meanwhile the Big Guy had taken his rage to the streets in search of Emily and her aunt.

Maeve was going to feel Hulk's vengeance and Tony wanted front row seats when it happened. "Any sign of them, JARVIS?"

"Nothing yet, sir."

Tony cursed and swerved to avoid hitting a building. Below him was the large frame of the Hulk running down the street. As of now, Stark had no idea where Maeve was. She could have been anywhere in the world. This had turned into a race against time. They searched up and across the city, the Hulk mowing down all who got in his way. Cars were sent flying in nearby buildings and people were screaming in terror as they ran out of his way. Natasha, Clint, and Amelia had gotten a hold of one of his cars and were searching areas he and the Hulk had missed.

Minutes passed and Stark was beginning to wonder if they were even in the city.

"Sir, there are unusual energy levels in Central Park."

And it had caught the Hulk's attention. He skidded to a halt and turned his head. His brow was furrowed in confusion. For a moment he looked up at Stark hovering just above him. Without a word they took off,

"I think we found them!" cried Tony. In the middle of the green and lush park, in the dead of night, was a large glowing circle. It was written in several different languages he couldn't understand. Tied up in the middle, screaming as loud as her lungs would allow, was Emily. Tears fell down her face as her aunt, or what was left of her, knelt at the edge, muttering incoherently.

Just as Stark was wondering how to disrupt her work, The Hulk came in and solved the problem for him. He hit Maeve with every ounce of strength he possessed. It was satisfying to watch her body go sailing over several trees, screaming in fury. The circle lost its power and the Big Guy wasted no time bringing Emily into the safety of his arms.

Tony landed to the earth with a resounding thud. He watched Hulk tear away Emily's bonds, humming comfortingly to her. He cradled her in his arms as she sobbed uncontrollably. The Big Guy knew that right now all she needed was him. As Stark gazed at the two, a smirk touching his face, he realized that they were meant to be together. They were a perfect fit.

"_No!_" The playboy spun on his heel and readied his repulsars'. Maeve came tearing across the grass, her eyes as black as the night, her face set into a snarl showing her pointed teeth. Tony couldn't believe he had let that thing stay in his house. The Hulk growled threateningly at her, clutching Emily even closer to him. He looked ready to bolt. He wasn't afraid to fight Maeve but the woman in his arms was his primary concern.

Before anyone could do anything a silver car screeched to a halt. Amelia came flying out of the vehicle, something large and heavy in her hands. Time seemed to slow as the two women came face to face. Every inch of hate Maeve felt she took out on Amelia who pulled back the iron bar in her hands and nailed the demonic woman in the face. It didn't stop her clawed hands from nearly tearing out Amelia's throat.

Maeve howled in pain, the skin that had been touched by Iron started to melt away like it had been hit with acid. Amelia dropped to the ground in a pool of blood. She lay gasping for air, a hand to her throat trying to stem the flow. The Fae woman, or whatever she had become, hissed and got to her knees. Tony fired a rupulsar at her and knocked her to her back. But it did not deter her. They all tried to knock her down, Clint fired arrow after arrow at her. Even Natasha managed to get a few rounds of ammo into her. She just wouldn't stay down.

Then, the atmosphere changed. All movement came to a stop; even Maeve dropped her clawed hands and froze. Tony blinked several times for a moment. One minute it had been nearly all out war, the next the demonic Fae was being brought to her knees by an unknown male.

He was tall and carried himself with an air of regality. He had the common look of the Fae, tall with a muscular physique. His face was elegantly shaped with long silver hair and pointed ears. His eyes were the most striking blue Tony had ever seen. But unlike Maeve, who had given off an air of uncomfortable tension, this man exuded peace and serenity.

"Sister," his voice carried without him trying. His eyes held no hate, no revulsion. Instead they gazed down at Maeve in pity, as if he felt sorry for her, "What have you become?" She did not take her eyes from his. From the darkness two more emerged, just as beautiful as the first. They stood on either side of Maeve, expressions that of sorrow and loss.

"Banishment," stated the blue eyed male quietly, "send her to live with her own kind," he turned his back on the woman, "She is no longer one of us."

Whoever this man was, he could not bear the sight of the woman being dragged away. Her loud protests and accusations seemed to burn him. He turned his head to the sky and muttered, "Forgive her." When the screams finally died away into the darkness he strode over to a slowly dying Amelia Branson. Tenderly he cradled her in his arms, a smile touched his features. The brown haired woman tried to return the gesture but ended up choking on her own blood.

"I'm sorry, Niall." She managed, the man hushed her gently.

"All will be well." He replied but everyone could see in his eyes that there was no hope for her. The wound in her neck was too grave and she had already lost too much blood. Amelia was going to die. Tony then realized who was looking at. This man who gave off the same feeling of calm and kindness that Emily did shared her eyes. This was Emily's father.

"Forever?" Amelia coughed violently, a shudder wracking her body. Niall closed his eyes and placed a sweet kiss to her forehead.

"_Deo_…" he whispered, Amelia's hand reached up and touched his face. He grasped it and held it there. Slowly, it slipped from his clutch and fell to the ground uselessly. Amelia Branson took her last breath and died with a smile on her face.

Tony couldn't understand why it had to end like that. Amelia was a good person, timid, but still a good person. She didn't deserve to die, not for trying to protect her daughter. If there was a God out there he prayed that he would show the woman kindness. She had died for the one thing she had loved the most. Niall gently lay Amelia on the ground, her eyes closed and finally at peace.

Emily's father stood to his full height, well over six feet, and his eyes flicked to each member of the group. First to Tony, he nodded to the man as he passed by. Natasha and Clint were thanked in the same manner. When he got the Hulk, however, he looked up at the Big Guy with the same kindness and understanding Emily did.

The green giant did not growl or snarl at the smaller man. They regarded each other for several minutes in silence. Until finally—

"Thank you," Niall bowed his head, "for saving my daughter."

Hulk nodded and returned his attention to Emily, whose uncontrollable cries had turned to soft whimpers. Her hands splayed out across his chest, seeking the comfort he had to offer. The nightmare was over.

* * *

Bruce groaned in pain, his head felt groggy and every muscle in his body screamed in agony. Flashes of memory came zipping across his mind. A street in New York being torn apart in his rage, vague images of central park. He hoped he hadn't hurt anyone. Then, Emily came crashing into his mind. He flew up into a sitting position, groaning in pain. Where was she?

"Calm down, big guy." Bruce's swimming vision slowly cleared. He was lying in a bed, covers over his half naked body. Tony came into view concern in his eyes.

"Emily, where is—"

She came in through the door the next minute. Utter relief washed over him as he visibly deflated. She smiled softly at him, when she reached the bed she sat next to him. Slowly her fingers danced over his face and brushed his hair. He uttered a sigh of relief and grasped it.

"What happened?"

"Uh, well, you threw a fit. Trashed half of the thirty-fifth floor and went out on to the town to throw an even bigger temper tantrum."

Bruce did not look amused causing Tony to chuckle, "What about Maeve?"

"Calm yourself, Doctor Banner," surprised he watched another man strode into the room. He wore a black and beige tunic and had long silver hair that ran down his back. He gazed at the doctor with blue eyes and a kind smile. He stood taller than both Emily and Tony as he came up to the bed. Bruce did a double take. While Emily looked so much like her mother, the aura of the man standing behind her was almost the same.

The man bowed his head, "I am Niall, Emily is my daughter," he placed gentle hands on her shoulders. She looked up at him and smiled softly, "And you need not worry about my sister, she has been taken care of."

"What happened to her?"

Niall sighed, "She had become what all Fae fear the most, a demon. She had given in to the darkness in her heart and allowed herself to be corrupted by her hate."

"So she's gone?"

Niall nodded, "Where she has been sent she cannot leave unless she is summoned."

Bruce gave another sigh of relief,

"Well not that this isn't any fun, but I've I got to go. Someone's got to cover your ass about last night, not a lot of people are happy."

Tony wiggled a reprimanding finger at him and smirked, Bruce grimaced, "Sorry."

"Don't be, if there's one thing evil should know about heroes, it is never to touch what is most precious to us." Replied Niall calmly, "And I cannot thank you enough for saving her."

Bruce shook his head, "You don't need to thank me I would do anything for her. After all, she saved me first." He clasped Emily's hand in his; earning him the sweet smile he loved so much.

"Before you two go off into a moment please remember that Professor Xavier has been kind enough to pay us a visit." Called Tony as he turned to walk out the door. Bruce was a little embarrassed to move, but Niall instantly, and with little effort, escorted Emily out of the room. Before she left she wrapped him in a hug.

* * *

It was the most incredible honor for Bruce to meet Charles Xavier for the first time. He had heard so much of the esteemed Professor from the news that he was a bit surprised how unassuming the man was. Bruce, fully dressed in a pair of slacks and a button up shirt, waited patiently for Charles with Emily and Niall. They sat comfortably on the couch in the penthouse. It was there he had learned of Amelia's fate.

"I'm sorry," muttered Bruce softly, he wondered if Emily knew enough to realize that her mother was gone, "She didn't deserve that."

"Not everyone deserves their fate; I can only hope that she has found happiness now."

There was a long and sad silence. Bruce may have disliked Amelia for the things she had done, but she had tried so hard to make up for it. Dying shouldn't have been the answer. He cursed Maeve for the trouble she had brought.

A loud ding brought everyone's attention to the elevator. The silver doors slid open and a man and woman came in. The man was obviously Charles Xavier; he sat comfortably in his wheelchair, an amicable smile on his face. Trailing behind him was a young woman with red brown hair; she had a kind and open face. She clasped her hands in front of her as she followed behind Professor Xavier.

Bruce stood and greeted the man, "It's good to meet you, sir." He said with a shake of his hand. The older gentleman chuckled,

"Doctor Banner, I presume, I have heard much of you." Awkwardly Bruce averted his eyes, in an effort to direct attention away from him he looked back to Emily. In the next heartbeat she was at his side gazing down at the man in the wheelchair. "And this must be Emily." She smiled at him, "Come, child, give me your hands."

Without complaint she got down to her knees and held out her dainty hands. Charles clasped them gently; there was a long silence as they looked each other in the eyes. After several minutes he finally let go of her. She stood and smiled again finding her way back to Bruce's side. Charles seemed to regard Emily for a long while, Bruce's stomach started to do small flips the longer he stared at her.

"There is good news and bad news," stated the professor after a while, "Which would you like to hear first?"

"The good news." Replied Bruce evenly,

"I can save her," a collective sigh of relief passed between him and Niall. Emily's father had explained to him why he could not do Maeve's job. He did not have his sister's talent for magic use; he preferred to use a sword. They were both riding on the hope that Charles could do something.

"Emily is in a sort of subconscious sleep. When her spirit body had been damaged she had gone into a state of rest while her body worked on autopilot to perform functions that would keep her alive. You'll be very happy to find with a little more coaxing I can wake her up."

What's the bad news?"

Charles looked pointedly at Niall, "I think Emily's father can better explain it than I can."

Bruce turned to him and watched as the man contemplated his daughter, "When Emily was born a choice had to be made. To either live with her mother and be raised as a human, or to come with me and be raised as a Fae. She could not be both; her dual nature would tear her apart. When Amelia made the decision that Emily stay with her it was decided that my daughter could have nothing to do with me. It would awaken her second nature if she knew of it."

"Of course my sister couldn't resist meddling in her niece's life. Amelia could do nothing as Maeve whisked her away every summer to Ireland, the ancestral home of the Fae. She was trying to awaken Emily's second nature without telling her who she was in order to beguile her into learning magick. When she was powerful enough Maeve would take Emily's powers for her own and leave her for dead. It was luck that my daughter stumbled upon our old ruins and found the Incantus, her newfound power scared her badly enough for her to run away. The rest of it you know."

"What are you saying," questioned Bruce, he clutched Emily's hand his heart beating in his chest, "that Emily will die no matter what we do?"

"Halflings like her, who were raised human, were not meant to know of Magick, Doctor. It awakens the second nature, which is why Emily fails in almost every one of her spells." That wasn't true. With a little work he had managed to help Emily succeed in one. "But I think there is a way to counteract that." Niall looked to the professor, "I have no skill in Magick as my sister did, but I believe you could perform what I need. The Magick in Emily is stronger than her human side, but if she is bound to another human we may be able to balance the two."

It seemed logical, like adding a base to an acid. "But who would we bind her to?" Niall looked at Bruce like was an idiot.

"You, of course, by binding her soul to yours we can even out the two natures."

It left Bruce speechless for a moment. He didn't know what to think until he looked down at the woman at his side. She was worth it; there was no question of that. If binding himself to her is what it took to help her then he'd do it.

"First things first," Professor Xavier politely cut in, "We must bring Emily back to a spiritually conscious state. Afterwards we can do the binding; I'll of course need an assistant. I hope you don't mind if my student, Jean, participates." The woman behind Charles smiled, Bruce shook his head,

"No, I don't, how soon can we start?"

* * *

They all gathered in Bruce's bedroom, since the good doctor had destroyed Emily's. Jean Grey led the witch to the bed and laid her down without a fight. Niall and Bruce stood to one side as Charles Xavier wheeled up to Emily and placed a gentle hand to her forehead. Confusion flashed across her face before she closed her eyes and fell asleep.

Xavier then touched her temples and closed his eyes in concentration. The room was dead silent; no one moved or said a word. Bruce felt like breathing was a violation. For over an hour he worked, not once flinching. Finally Emily groaned, his heart leapt into his throat as she clenched the bed sheet in her hand. Very slowly Charles pulled away his hands and opened his eyes.

"It is done," he whispered quietly, looked at Jean and with a silent understanding the woman touched Bruce on the arm, "I'm keeping her asleep for the binding." Jean Grey led Bruce over to the bed, as she did with Emily. He easily slipped into the spot next her and laid his head back onto the pillow.

"Relax, Doctor. I'm going to put you to sleep, ok? Don't try to fight it," she looked past his eyes and into his subconscious. The Other Guy grunted as their gaze met, "Everything will be fine, remember who you're doing this for."

She placed hand on his head. Instantly Bruce felt tired, his eyes grew heavy and his body began to relax. In the next moment he was floating in the black sea of sleep.

* * *

_**A/N: Whoohoo! I'm almost done with this Arc of the story! I'm pulling these out super fast because uckily for me I have the next few chapters written out on paper. So you can expect the next one soon.**_

_**For the word in italics, Deo, it means forever in Irish. I didn't plan on killing Amelia in the first place but it's not really a story unless someone dies. Try not to hate me.**_

_**See that little box below? Yeah that's the review box; please take the time before leaving to type some CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM please.**_

_**PathlessSpore**_


	18. Bonded

Trust in Me  
Avengers Fanfiction  
Bruce Banner/ OC  
Chapter 17  
Bonded

_I will stand by you_  
_I will help you through_  
_When you've done all you can do_  
_If you can't cope_

_I will dry your eyes_  
_I will fight your fight_  
_I will hold you tight_

_And I won't let go_

_I won't let go-Rascal Flatts_

* * *

Darkness stretched on forever every direction, the woman who was Emily but not Emily floated in a vast sea of nothingness. She lay on her back calmly listening to the waves. With eyes closed she laid there on the dark sea disconnected from the rest of the world. There was no pain, no suffering. Occasionally, vague noises reached her from the distance. She could not tell what was happening outside of her ocean of peace and serenity, but there were times she heard a voice. A voice so familiar it brought a smile to her face every time she heard it.

Time passed like eons and she was content to float in the sea. To let the waves carry her, rock her gently in their arms. That was until _he _fished her out of the sea. He came in a humble fishing boat and as tenderly as the sea he brought her to the deck. She opened her eyes and sat up, wondering why she was no longer drifting in the dark ocean. The man before her sat in a wheelchair and had a kind and open face.

"Who are you?" she inquired, she did not know how she could speak. There was no one but her in this dark place. The man in the wheelchair cocked his head with interest and smiled,

"My name is Charles Xavier. Do you know who you are, dear?"

She contemplated him for a moment, and then shook her head. She could not remember who she was or where she had come from. The only feeling she got from her past life was that of hurt and scorn. If that was who she was then she had no desire to remember.

"No, do you know who I am?" If this man knew, he did not impart any details. He gazed at her for a long time,

"You've been asleep for a long time," he said after several minutes, "It's time to wake up."

The woman who was Emily but not Emily shook her head. She gave him an amicable smile,

"I don't want to, I like it here." Charles' expression turned sad,

"But so many people are waiting for you, people who care greatly for you. Do you not remember the man who loves you with every fiber of his being?"

She hesitated, she couldn't recall. Was there a man who loved her that much? She tried to search her feelings for the love she would have experienced. It was indistinct in the back of her mind. But through it all she still felt the hate of others, the pain and the cries of a child. She became afraid to know her true self.

Charles reached out and took her hands in his. Uncertainty settled over her as he smiled. Then, very slowly, his disappeared into the darkness and the woman who was Emily but not Emily fell into a white abyss.

The first memory came with her name. She was Emily Branson, illegitimate child to Amelia Branson, who sat in her chair in the dining room draining a glass of brandy. She flinched as a broad, mean looking man screamed at her. Amelia poured herself another drink as the man, whom Emily knew as father, turned on a little girl with big blue eyes. Before Drake Branson could hit little Emily, her mother dived in between the two and was struck across the face. The vision faded as the little girl ran out of the room.

The next memory was much later in her life, after learning to hide from Drake and his rages. Emily walked into the kitchen and spied her mother. Emily knew that Amelia was a different person when Drake wasn't around. Timidly, she walked up to the woman who sported a new bruise on her face, and tapped her on the shoulder. Amelia nearly spilled her drink and she swiftly turned to her daughter. The preteen Emily showed her mother the music notes in her hand. The ghost of a smile painted her mother's face and the girl felt her chest puff with pride. The moment was short lived as both women heard the loud and angry voice of Drake Branson. Amelia pushed away her daughter and quickly left the room. Emily knew that now was a good time to disappear.

Suddenly, she was being pushed down by a girl no older than her. Sarah, her stepsister, sneered and kicked her books on music. Emily, who looked fourteen or fifteen, cowered in fear until Sarah had finished her fun. Tears brimmed blue eyes as her nasty stepsister walked away. Her books had been ruined and she cried over their loss. A pair of feet entered her vision. She looked up and a smile broke out across her face. Violet eyes bore into hers, inquiring about why they were there. Emily scrambled up and ran into the waiting arms of her Aunt Maeve knowing everything would be well.

The memory of the Mantra Incantus flashed across Emily's eyes. She was seventeen years old and so scared of her new power. She recalled the fear and the despair as she went on the run. Each new place she exhibited her abilities, drawing attention to herself. She never stayed in one place for very long, avoiding the people who had heard of her.

The accident in Venice made Emily cry, and she remembered how depressed she had been. She wanted to die. She cried for days afterwards hiding in some remote town in Italy knowing that everyone was out to get her. That was also when she met Natasha Romanoff for the first time. Emily sat in an alleyway, hiding from the people walking the streets. She was cold, hungry, and desperate. Footsteps caught her attention and she cocked her head to glance a woman walking down the alley towards her. Emily tried to make herself inconspicuous as the red haired woman came to a stop in front of her.

She got down on her haunches and Emily squeezed her eyes shut. She waited for someone to grab her hair and drag her down the alley kicking and screaming. When nothing came she snuck a peek up and found that the woman was smiling at her. Gently, she held out an envelope. The girl eyed it apprehensively before taking it with a shaky hand. Without a word, the red haired woman smiled one last time and disappeared down the alley. The young woman quickly opened the envelope and pulled out a piece of paper. It had an address of a café in Paris on it along with one sentence:

_It's time for us to meet._

Emily gasped and the faces of her friends came into her mind. There was Nick Fury, who had shown her genuine kindness and who had given her a home on the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier. Then came Phil Coulson who always said good morning to her when he saw her. Maria Hill, who always treated her nicely. There was Cassidy, who was willing to be her cheerleader as Emily tried to master her powers. Clint Barton, Hawkeye, who was like a big brother to her. She met Natasha again and was brought into her open arms.

Then Tony Stark who remembered her from so long ago, another man who was like the big brother she always wanted. Thor, despite being a thickheaded moron, had honor and never saw her for the monster she was.

She remembered them all and she realized that despite all the unhappiness in her life there were people who did care for her. But what of the man who loved her? She could not see his face, or call to mind his name.

Then, Emily stopped her free fall. She landed gracefully on her feet. The dark ocean had turned into a white expanse that went on forever. She finally knew who she was, and what she was. She was a powerful half Fae witch.

Emily turned to all directions spying nothing but white until she spotted a black silhouette in the distance. She watched as it slowly got closer and closer. When it got close enough she recognized it as a man. He was taller than her, with short brown hair peppered with gray. He had kind brown eyes and a loving smile on his face. Behind him was another figure even taller than him, but she could not make it out. It was large, beast like, but walked calmly with the smaller man.

They came face to face, they looked down at her and very slowly he reached out and touched her arm. He stepped closer to her, the warmth of his body radiating from him. His other hand cupped her face and traced her jaw. A tear slipped down her cheek. This was him, the man who loved her. And she loved him too, so much that it hurt to see the sad longing in his eyes.

Then, he wrapped her in his arms. She breathed in the scent of spring breezes and the sun's warm feel. He grumbled low in his chest and she watched as the larger shadow stooped down and touched her hair with on large finger. These two were one in the same but entirely two different people. She reached up and felt her hands slide across his face.

"Emily," the man who held her said her name reverently, like he was worshipping the sound it. His hands roamed across her body, memorizing every curve. The hulking shadow hummed softly,

"EM-ILY…."

She closed her eyes and his name, which had flitted in the back of her mind, sprang from her mouth. "Bruce…" the man with dreamy brown eyes smiled and kissed her. She turned to the shadow,

"Hulk…" and the memory of the tiny hovel brought tears to her eyes. She remembered watching him, thinking that he was cute and good looking. And she recalled why she was looking for him, because Loki had stolen the Tesseract and S.H.I.E.L.D. needed him to find it. She had hoped that he would come and was pleasantly surprised when he agreed to it. He worked like was supposed to but he always found an excuse to spend time with her. Bruce had even helped her control her powers. She had finally found someone who understood her.

Then the Hulk, when Loki had staged his elaborate escape, he was bold and wild. He radiated raw strength just from existing. He protected her, loved her, and would fight for her. She knew it so when Loki's army had torn apart New York. She had promised to leave with him knowing full well that she was going to die. It was worth it, knowing that she had helped save the world.

"Emily…" Bruce looked like he was about to cry, he held her so softly and kissed her gently on her lips, "Please, wake up…" his plead broke her heart. What had she done to him? "Please, wake up…"

Then, the white abyss slowly faded along with Bruce and the Hulk. She gave a cry and reached for them, she needed them. She loved them. They were outside waiting for her.

"_Please wake up, Emily…"_

* * *

Emily felt like she had been run over by an eighteen wheeler truck. She wanted to groan but that was painful as well. She heard distinct voices to her left and tried to crane her head but ended up hissing in discomfort. Instantly the voices stopped,

"Emily?" she whimpered and tried to open her eyes. She recognized the tone of Tony Stark. He sounded weary as his hand rested on her forehead. Her vision was blurred as she looked around; she was lying in a bed that much she knew. To her left was the hazy outline of Tony. As he came into focus Emily could see the worry in his eyes. When she met his gaze he smiled, "Hey there, sleepy head, welcome back to the land of the living."

Emily grinned weakly and tried to touch his hand. "Hi, Tony." She whispered softly. Her voice was hoarse with disuse. She coughed and Tony left her vision for a moment and came back with a glass of water. He helped her sit up on the bed and tipped the glass to her mouth. Greedily she drank from it until she had her fill. When she was done he set aside the water and sat with her.

"Loki?" she inquired and Tony gave her a mischievous smirk,

"Don't worry, we won. We kicked his ass for you."

She chuckled, "Good, I'm glad." She looked down at her hands. She remembered everything including her promise to the Hulk. How much had she hurt him? "How long have I been asleep?"

"A little over two months, give or take a few days. We finally managed to bring you out about two days ago. You've been resting up ever since." Tony nudged her in the arm, "And if you're wondering where your boyfriend is, he's taking a shower. He's hardly left your side since the battle for New York."

Emily nodded mutely; so Bruce hadn't left her. He had been so worried about her he refused to leave her alone. But had happened in the two months she had been "Asleep"? Determined she threw back her covers and swung her legs over the edge of the bed. With a deep breath she placed her feet on the cold hardwood and pushed herself up. Standing was easier than she thought it would be but she was still wobbly. Tony caught her before she could fall.

"Take it easy, Emily," cautioned the billionaire, "you just woke up. If anything happened to you now, your boyfriend would have no problem putting my head on a pike."

The witch chuckled and grasped his arms, "Who were you talking to?"

"Oh, it was just JARVIS, I've been working on a new suit and he was updating me on its progress."

Emily hummed softly and looked back up into his face. He looked very tired, like he hadn't slept in days. The young woman knitted her brows, "Are you ok?"

Tony laughed at her and set in a chair by a large picture window, "You just wake up from a coma and you ask me if I'm ok?" Emily was not amused and as she stared blankly at the older gentleman his laugh and smile slowly faded. "You don't need to be concerned, Emily. I'm fine."

He wasn't and she knew it, but she was kind enough to let it go. Then, the man brightened. He looked down at her excitedly, "There's someone you need to meet," he ran off only to come back and look sternly at her, "Don't move." He ran out of the automatic door and was back in five minutes with a man in tow. His was much taller than the Tony with lean muscles on his body. He wore an old fashioned black and beige tunic and carried a smile on his face.

The new man brushed past Stark and leaned down next to Emily's chair. For a moment she forgot how to breathe. She should know this man even thought she had never met him in her life. There was a familiar feeling around him and tears pricked her eyes as the pieces finally fell into place.

"Emily…" He reached out and ran his fingers through her hair, "I'm so glad you're awake." She grasped his hand and felt a tear slip over.

"Dad—" she sobbed, "Daddy?"

He smile at her and wiped away the water from her cheeks. This was him, the shadow of the man who had given her life. He held her gently in his arms as she cried. Why was he here? She didn't know but to finally meet him was overwhelming. Slowly her tears faded away as her father comforted her. He stroked her hair and spoke gently to her, telling her all would be well. She nodded and let his soothing aura wash over her.

The door hissed open again and all turned. Emily's eyes went wide as Bruce walked in. He wore a pair of blue jeans and a T-shirt, running a hand over his short hair. He froze at the scene his eyes first flicking to Tony, Emily's father and then to Emily herself. She watched the pure unadulterated joy rush across his face, he all but ran across the room skidding to his knees next to her where her father had been moments before. He and Tony left the room, leaving the two to their happiness.

"Emily," he whispered and he leaned up to brush his lips against hers. She fell from her chair and jumped into his arms, letting them wrap around her. She felt his chest heave rapidly and she looked to find him crying. Tears poured from his eyes as he held her against his chest, her heart broke at the sight. She had nearly broken the man she loved. The only thing that had kept him going was the thought that she would one day come back to him.

She cupped his face and reached up to kiss him. It was soft at first until Bruce pulled her in deeper, sending her spiraling up into heaven and beyond.

"I love you…" he whispered softly and she smiled.

"I love you, too…"

* * *

She held Bruce in her arms; night had fallen over Stark Tower. The streets below were still noisy with passing car horns and shouting people. But here in Bruce's room it was sanctuary. She ran her fingers over his hair as he laid his head against her chest. He had listened to her heart beat as he fell asleep. He snored softly, the remnants of many tears still staining his face.

They had stayed together in the room all day, first enjoying each other's warmth and presence. Bruce could finally be at peace knowing she had recovered from her ordeal. They sat and talked, Bruce filled her in on what had happened in the last two months. She had even learned of her mother, who had spent most of her time in Stark Tower with her daughter. Emily inquired of Amelia's whereabouts but when Bruce looked away ashamed she felt anxiety settle over her.

He told her of Maeve's true intentions, of what she had turned into. He told her how Emily's mother had given her life to save her only daughter. Bruce comforted her as she cried for the loss of her mother, wishing she could tell her how much she loved her.

Afterwards, she learned of Charles Xavier, the man she had seen in her subconscious, and how he had agreed to help her. She wondered where he was so she could at least thank him, but Bruce told her he had been called away. Silence fell over them and he brought her again into his arms. He couldn't stop holding, fearing that if he ever let her go again she'd disappear and he'd be alone.

They stayed like so long after night had fallen. Emily looked down at Bruce and smiled, she felt her stomach growl. It took a few minutes to wiggle out of his grip but when she did she covered him up and walked out of the room.

"JARVIS?" the Ai's smooth voice filtered from a nearby speaker,

"Yes, Miss Emily?"

"Is there anyone else up?"

It was quiet as JARVIS checked the tower, "Master Stark is the kitchen on the twenty ninth floor," an elevator dinged down the hall. She followed it and stepped into the claustrophobic space, "Shall I let him know you're on the way."

"Sure."

JARVIS directed her to the kitchen and when she walked in she found Tony slumping over the counter. He jumped and looked up at her; a tired smile covered his face,

"Hey, I though you and Mr. Green were having a moment."

"I'm hungry and don't feel like waking up Bruce, he looks like a train wreck." She walked over to him and teasingly nudged him in the arm, "Much like you do now."

"That's not nice," chuckled Tony and he ruffled her hair, "So what are you hungry for?" Emily grimaced as he went clashing about the kitchen looking for pots and pans. Apparently she wasn't the only one thinking it wasn't a good idea for him to cook because her father came sweeping in through the door.

"Perhaps," Niall removed a spatula from Stark's grip, his tone placating and calm, "you should leave this to someone who isn't as tired as you are." Tony scowled at the older man and rolled his eyes,

"Hey, be my guest. I have work to do anyway." He muttered irritably. He stalked over to the nearby coffee maker, which was full with a fresh batch of coffee, and grabbed the entire pot before walking out the door. Niall shook his head sadly, whatever was on his mind he didn't care to say because he smiled at Emily,

"What do you want to eat?"

She chuckled, "Right now, anything sounds good."

Twenty minutes later she had a steaming plate of eggs sitting in front of her. Her father joined her and she happily ate what she was given. As she polished off the last of her late night breakfast she glanced at the door where Tony had left,

"What's wrong with him?"

Niall eyed the door as well and sighed, "The battle for New York was harder on him than he thought it would be. He's already suffering for it. You know of soldiers who come home from war and react violently to the most innocent sounds."

"Post Traumatic Stress. Poor Tony…"

"Where is Doctor Banner? I don't think he'd let you out of his sight now that you're awake and walking."

Emily snickered, "Bruce is taking a well deserved rest." She pushed away her plate and leaned her elbows on to the table.

"Where were you when I needed you?" she whispered, the air seemed to still all at once. She could feel Niall's eyes settle on her, he took to moment before answering her,

"Emily, please understand what your mother and I did was always within your best interest."

"My best interest!" Emily stood and threw back the chair. Tears streamed down her face and her hands clenched in anger. The glasses in the cupboards started to shake, clinking together loudly, "My best interest! I suffered for years under the tyranny of man I had to call father and his brat of a daughter!" She cried harder and she felt Niall's hand grab her by the arms,

"What would you have had me do then, let you live with me and let your traitorous aunt use you for her own ends? Your mother saw Maeve for what she truly was; she could better protect you from her husband than she could from my sister."

"That didn't stop her!"

"It delayed her; if you had been raised as Fae you would have been introduced to Magick from the moment you were old enough to wield it without your dual nature tearing you apart. Because you were raised like a human Maeve had to introduce you to Magick without telling you who you were. I thank all gods that you were naïve enough to ignore it."

"But why weren't you there?"

"I could not risk you recognizing me, Emily, aren't you listening? You are only alive because you chose to ignore the truth until it was forced upon you. I know what you want to hear. That if I could I would change things, but I wouldn't change any of it! You were safer with you mother than you ever were with me!"

Emily sobbed; Niall had gotten progressively louder as his words stung more and more. Her father let go of her arms and she heard him walk to the door. The door slammed shut behind him. It took a few minutes for her to stop crying. Eventually she stopped blubbering and wiped away her tears, her father was right and it upset him more than it had her. He hated himself for not being able to protect Emily better.

She promised that when they had both cooled off she would apologize to him. For now she was content to walk back to Bruce's room. Crying her eyes out had made her tired and she was looking forward to hitting that pillow. However, as she walked in, Bruce was in the middle of a panic attack. He was looking around the room desperately until he spied her in the door way. He came flying out of the bed and pulled her into a frenzied hug.

"Oh god," he whispered as his lips met her neck, "I thought it was a dream…"

"I'm not going anywhere Bruce," she assured softly, but now that she was awake she needed to tell him everything. "There is something you do need to know—"

He shushed her gently, "I know, Emily. You're half Fae." She gave him a sad smile and nodded,

"But you must realize what that does to me."

"Your duel nature won't kill you," he interjected, "Not anymore."

She was rendered speechless for half a moment before recovering, "How?"

"Your father told us about it, how it would eventually wear your body down. It was him who suggested that we bind you to another human to even them out."

"Bind me to another human? Who?"

Bruce gave her a funny look, "Who do you think?" When it dawned on her she felt a little silly and it made her blush madly. He gave her chuckle and kissed her once more, "I'd do anything for you, Emily," he promised softly holding her against him, "I won't let you go, not without a fight…"

She sighed and laid her head on his chest, "I love you, Bruce." She whispered, she heard him rumble from deep within his chest,

"Not as much as I love you…"

"Forever?"

"Forever."

And she knew that was one promise he was never going to break.

* * *

_**A/N: So the next few chapters are gonna be pretty slow after this. I've got Summer College coming up in the next two weeks and I have to get everything done so I can sign up for college in the fall. Busy, busy, busy.**_

_**Anywho, I do have one favor to ask of you guys. I know how much you guys love updates, hey I love them too. However, please try not to ask me to update in your reviews. Number one, I'm asking for CONSTRUCTIVE criticism. Number two it puts a little pressure on me, like you guys expect me to pull one out of my butt or something. I'm working on these chapters as fast as my life will allow and luckily for all of us I had the past few chapters written down on paper. I'm not trying to be mean or anything but it gets kind of annoying.**_

_**Rant aside, you guys have got to let me know how I did on this chapter. That means CONSTRUCTIVE criticism! I don't really know what I'll be doing next but I plan on adding events from Iron Man 3 before ending the book. Just to make it a little interesting.**_

_**PathlessSpore**_


	19. Going back to School

Trust in Me  
Avengers Fanfic  
Bruce Banner/OC  
Chapter 18  
Going back to School

_I can finally see,  
That you're right there beside me,  
I am not my own,  
For I have been made new  
Please don't let me go,  
I desperately need you_

_Meteor Shower-Owl city_

* * *

_**A/N: **_

_**I'VE DONE IT!**_

_**After weeks of scouring the internet listening to a mix of crappy and heartwrenching songs I have found Bruce and Emily's PERFECT THEME!**_

_***Dies Happy***_

_**So this is it, from now on and forever more their theme is "Meteor Shower" by Owl city. It's short, sweet, and to the point**_

_**Enjoy the chapter, and I know I'll say it again at the bottom, but, CONSTRUCTIVE criticism please.**_

* * *

It took a few weeks for Bruce to finally stop hovering over her shoulder. He had been nervous to leave her by herself the first few days, but as time passed on she found his vultering habits a bit annoying. Eventually, she had to send him scurrying from her side with a well placed glare and the snap of her fingers. That didn't stop him from keeping an eye on her from the relative safety of his lab.

Emily never got the chance to apologize to her father for her unacceptable behavior. He had been called back to the Dark World to take care of some troubling business with the Unseelie court. When she had found out about his sudden departure it had left her very upset. She didn't want him to hate her, or think she was some selfish brat. Instantly Bruce had been at her side offering her comfort, telling her that no matter what Niall loved her and that wouldn't ever change.

How Bruce knew when she was upset eluded Emily for a long while. She ultimately came to the conclusion that the bond between them had not only evened out her two natures and tied them together for the rest of their life; it also gave each other access to their emotions. On the occasion she could hear his thoughts, nothing nasty. He often wondered if she was okay, or if he ever had some insanely hard equation right. She managed to learn how to tune them out after a while, only listening in on his feelings when they were panicked, sad, or extremely pissed off.

But not only did the bond give them intimate access to the other's mind, it would have several health benefits for them as well. Being half Fae Emily would live an unnaturally long life, especially now that her Magickal nature was awake. Because Bruce was a part of her he would share in that longevity.

As time passed Emily began to grow bored of the Tower. More often than not she found herself staring out of the library window. She gazed longingly down at the people in the streets, laughing with their friends. Soon she found herself yearning for the companionship of people her own age. The only problem was she had no friends her own age and had no way to make any. She did not want to spend all her time locked away in Stark Tower. She considered this problem for several days until the solution finally hit her.

It was early afternoon as she went looking for Bruce. JARVIS directed her to the kitchen to find him sitting with Pepper Potts and a bent out of shape Tony Stark. It was safe to say he looked terrible. Bruce gave the man an irritable sigh as she walked in and sat down next to him at the island counter,

"We're concerned, Tony," he said evenly, "I've pulled all nighters before but you've been up for almost three days now. This is getting a bit ridiculous."

The arrogant playboy stuck out his chin defiantly and poured himself another cup of coffee, "I'm fine," he insisted. Emily didn't miss Pepper's eye roll and when their gaze met both woman shook their head in disbelief. Men… "Besides, you're just jealous you can't make a train wreck look as good as this."

Bruce sighed crossly and decided that Tony was no longer worth the strain on his temper. He turned to Emily and smiled, "You're down here early," he observed, "What's on your mind?" He knew he could just take a peek inside her head but was nice enough to ask her first before he went probing.

Emily felt a little nervous, something that her good looking man caught onto, and figured she just better get it out right away, "I want to go back to school."

The stunned silence was so deafening she was sure she heard a cricket in some far off corner of the room. Tony was the first to find his powers of speech,

"Well that was unexpected…"

"Is there any particular reason why?" Bruce inquired softly; she knew he didn't like the idea of her leaving Stark Tower. She'd be out of his reach in case she needed him. She shrugged her shoulders,

"I never got to finish my senior year, I thought since I have such a good handle on my powers now would be the best time." In a sense that was true, ever since Bruce had been a part of her soul, her Magickal heritage knew it was outnumbered two to one. So it decided to go sit in a corner and behave itself. But she didn't want to tell him she was getting bored and restless; she didn't want him getting the wrong idea. She just wanted friends her own age.

"But why go back to school," Tony gave her an angry frown, "You have two super genius here to teach you everything you need to know."

"Tony," hissed Pepper, "Not everyone graduates high school before the age of sixteen, and I'll have you know it is extremely gratifying walking that stage and getting your diploma. I'm sure Emily would like to have the same experience."

That shut the playboy up and he looked away abashed. Bruce laid a hand on her shoulder and looked her in the eyes, "Is this what you want?" Emily nodded eagerly. Pepper beamed at her,

"Well if you want to go back to school we'll have to get you signed up, it's heading into the fall time and we're late as it is." Suddenly the woman stopped and tapped her chin, "But wait, they might not let you back in, sweetie, depending on your age." Everyone watched as the witch visibly deflated,

"How old are you anyway, Emily?" Inquired Tony and the young woman had to stop and think about it.

"It's July twenty-ninth…." She muttered softly, "My birthday was last week on the seventeenth."

Outraged cries roared through the room, "And you didn't tell us!" Cried Tony indignantly shaking his head in disappointment. Flustered, Emily just shrugged her shoulders,

"By the time I remembered it hardly seemed that important."

"You only turn nineteen once, Emily" said Bruce softly, she cringed at the look she was receiving. He wasn't angry with her; he looked like he felt bad about missing her birthday. Tony slammed his hand on the table,

"That's it, before I leave we're throwing you a birthday bash!" he declared loudly, Emily shot him a confused glance,

"What do you mean, 'before you leave'?"

"Tony," Pepper smacked her boyfriend in the arm, "you were supposed to tell her."

"Sorry, slipped my mind. Pepper and I are heading back to Malibu, she's got work to do at Stark Industries and I have a bunch of pet projects that need my attention." Before the witch could protest the billionaire philanthropist stopped her, "I knew you'd be upset that your favorite guy—" he cleared his throat nervously as Bruce shot him a venomous glare, "—Second favorite guy would be leaving you behind so I managed to talk to Fury and—"

As if on cue the kitchen doors opened and in walked a woman wearing a S.H.I.E.L.D uniform. Emily's eyes lit up with surprise, "Cassidy?" she squealed and left her seat to tackle the black haired girl. The two were nearly the same age which had made Emily happy to no end when they first met.

"Hi Emily," she gasped and the two started giggling, "Mr. Stark thought you might get lonely and talked Director Fury into letting me stay with you."

Bruce's emotions bombarded her at once. Suspicion was at the top of the list. With a tender smile she turned to her man and shook a finger at him, "Don't get bent out of shape," she scolded sternly, Bruce rolled his eyes and placed a quick check on his temper, "It's safe to say Cassidy is one of my best friends, she put up with me long before you did Bruce."

"Ouch." Muttered Tony casting a teasing glance at the Doctor who scowled at him.

"I'm just a little cautious of new people, Emily." Said Bruce calmly, Cassidy nodded and smiled warmly at him,

"Then never fear," she declared, "Emily is safe and sound with me, I'm a second degree black belt working on my third degree, I know seven different languages, am trained proficiently in gun use and so long as I live no harm will ever come her."

It did little to assuage his nervousness, but knowing that someone Emily trusted was looking out for her made Bruce smile. Everyone chuckled at Cassidy's outburst, finally Pepper managed to restore some order,

"I don't know if it's possible for you to go back to school, dear," she gave Emily a sad smile, "I think you may have missed your shot."

Tony took another swing of his coffee and patted his girlfriend on the arm, "You just leave that to me."

* * *

_**A/N: I know it's not as long as the others, it's a filler chapter of sorts I guess. I needed a bridge so we could get into the next part of the story.**_

_**Seriously! 97 reviews, ok 96 since the last one kinda went wrong somewhere, but still! I'm so close to one hundred reviews guys! This will be the second one of my stories to reach one hundred, the other being "Someone to Watch Over Me". I can't guarantee any reward for reaching that milestone, I really don't want to ruin this thing with a lemon, since I find mine kinda crappy, but seriously! I kinda want to do that happy dance a second time around.**_

_**So, with that in mind, CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM! Please…**_

_**Pathless Spore**_


	20. Birthday Bash

Trust in Me  
Avengers Fanfic  
Bruce Banner/OC  
Chapter 19  
Birthday Bash

_You raise me up so I can stand on mountains  
You raise me up to walk on stormy seas  
I am strong when I am on your shoulders  
You raise me up to more than I can be_

_You raise me up-Celtic Woman_

* * *

Emily grumbled under her breath and shifted her head slightly. She could hear the voices of strangers around her, her heels clicked against the floor methodically as she was led along to some unknown destination. Her hands clenched the fabric of her black dress, itching to remove the blindfold so she could have her balance back. From behind her, hands on her shoulders, Bruce chuckled and kissed her gently on the neck.

"Almost there," he said. Today was the day of her supposed birthday party. Tony had been on the phone for nearly a week making all the preparations. Emily had insisted that a nice in home party would be sufficient. But Tony being Tony had to throw conventional reason out the window and spend obscene amounts of money on her. It made her feel guilty.

Emily had been in her room getting ready for her party. Tony had said it was semi formal, so she used the black dress Pepper bought for her. She was putting in her silver hoop earrings when Tony just waltzed in. Bruce came in two and a half seconds later glaring at his back,

"I'd appreciate it if you knocked next time," he snapped irritably. Both men were dressed in easy-going slacks and button up shirts. Emily smiled gently; Bruce was always such a gentleman. Tony barely gave her boyfriend a second glance as he brought out a length of silk and held it out to her.

"Put it on," he said, the witch eyed him suspiciously. Stark bounced impatiently on his toes, "Where you're going is a surprise. Please?"

With a resigned sigh she grabbed it and watched the billionaire stride out her door. Emily returned her attention to the mirror and grabbed her brush. Meticulously she combed out the knots until Bruce came up from behind and grabbed the brush out of her hands. He finished combing out the rest of her brandy hair, leaving it falling in silky waves down her back.

"You look beautiful," he murmured softly as she stood and wrapped him in her arms. When she pulled away he turned her around and slipped the blindfold over her eyes, sending her into darkness. She didn't feel entirely lost though. Bruce's touch was always there, reassuring as he guided her out of the Tower and into a car. The ride was twenty minutes at best.

When Bruce helped her out of the car and into the building the first thing she noticed the atmosphere seemed different. He led her along for a while, taking several turns until he opened a door. Very gently he pushed her through. The room had buzzed with quiet whispers but went silent as she came to a halt. Then, the blindfold was pulled away.

Emily gasped as her gaze instantly shot upwards. The ballroom was the biggest she had ever seen. High above her was a grand chandelier, lights flickering on to the golden and elegant dance floor. Intricate designs decorated the floor and vaulted ceiling and classical piano music could be heard playing in the background. And standing before her were all her friends.

"SURPRISE!" they screamed throwing streamers at her. She laughed loudly feeling tears prick her eyes. She had never had a birthday before. At least not like this. She had never had any friends who celebrated her existence, never had anyone say, 'Happy Birthday' to her. For as long as she could remember she had always celebrated her day of birth alone.

All at once, they swarmed her. Natasha and Clint were laughing; the spy wiped away her tears. Steve grinned at her with Cassidy right beside him. Director Fury and Maria Hill each gave her a hug, while Pepper steered her towards her chair. Tony was busy wrapping party streamers in her hair, a grin painting his face. The tables were pushed together and everyone sat down with her.

"Happy Birthday, Emily!" they cried and from a side door the young woman watched with awe as a large white cake was carted out. Vanilla was strawberry filling, her favorite. How had Tony known? She had the distinct feeling Bruce had told him.

They sang her a happy birthday, tears still spilling over her cheeks. In her grasp was Bruce's hand as she tried to stop crying. Emily got the first piece of her cake but she was crying so much she couldn't take a bite. Her friends waited patiently as she finally sniffled and wiped her face. When she finally had her piece they all joined in. Loud and raucous laughter filled the ballroom.

After everyone was done eating presents came soon after. Natasha and Clint bought her an expensive set of perfume and makeup. Steve got her a book on music history. Pepper brought out a large finely wrapped gift and set it in front of her.

Gingerly she opened it and gasped. It was a leather-bound book and inside thousands upon thousands of sheet music filled with notes she recognized. Beethoven, Mozart, she recognized all their works and even a few other famous artists.

"How?" she asked breathlessly, her eyes wide with shock. Tony smiled,

"There is nothing money can't buy," he chuckled and he threw something in front of her. Confused she opened it as well and giggled,

"Houdini's Guide to Beginner's Magic," she eyed Stark with amusement, earning snorts from her guests, "That's cute Tony, real cute." He just grinned at her. Emily shook her head and watched as Bruce brought out his gift next. It was a small red box with a red bow on it. When she opened the box she forgot how to breathe for several moments.

Nestled inside was the most beautiful necklace she had ever seen. It glistened and glittered in the light, the chain was made with over seven small diamonds and hanging from it was a small grand piano charm. Carefully she lifted it out of the box, a slew of listless sighs shuffled through the group.

"You've got good taste, sir." Commented Tony with appreciation, Emily looked up into his brown eyes and nearly broke down into tears again. He just smiled gently at her, comfort and love flitting in the back of her mind.

"Thank you…" she whispered and she let him put on her gift.

Suddenly a waltz came on the speakers above them and Stark was up out of his seat.

"I call first dibs on the dance!" Loud protests did nothing to deter Tony as he dragged Emily out to the floor. She felt Bruce's irritation flicker slightly, she turned to flash him a smile. Instantly it was gone.

"So? Do I know how to throw a party or what?" The billionaire flashed her a smug look and she giggled,

"It's the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me." She said softly as he swung her around the floor, "I don't think you could have made this any better."

"Well," she twirled gracefully, "I wanted to hire male strippers. Your boyfriend nearly took my head off for that one."

She cocked an eyebrow at him, "I should think so," for a moment she was silent, then—"He really is my boyfriend now, isn't he?"

"Duh."

Before she could say more the dance ended and right away Director Fury was leading her across the floor. She was confused about why Fury was doing this; he answered her question,

"I do have a gift for you Emily," he said, "I think you'll like it."

"What is it?"

"You're free to go." She gave him a blank stare for several seconds before the Director laughed at her, "You are no longer under S.H.I.E.L.D.'s jurisdiction. You're free woman, Emily."

"Truly?"

He smiled at her, "Truly."

Happiness and relief settled in her stomach and she thanked the man. She owed him so much but he saw fit to let her leave. She would always be grateful to him. By the time she was done waltzing with Steve her feet were sore. Natasha and Clint had taken the dance floor with Tony and Pepper. Emily removed her heels and started to rub her aching feet. As she looked out upon her friends enjoying her party she smiled. For the first time in a long time she felt like she belonged. Gentle hands fell on her shoulders, she reached back and touched Bruce's fingers and looked up at him.

His gaze was tender and sweet and he gazed down at her, "I hope you didn't forget about me…" he muttered softly. Emily chuckled and put her heels back on. Gracefully she stood and took him by the hand,

"I could never forget about you." She whispered as they began to dance to an extremely slow waltz. He laughed and proceeded to sweep her off her feet. Emily sighed happily and laid her head on his chest, listening to the beat of his heart.

* * *

_A few days later_

True to his word Tony had managed to sign her up for her last year of school. Emily didn't ask how he had managed it, though she was sure he had spent more money on her. It was a week before the start of the school year. Tony and Pepper had left for their home in Malibu three days ago, shortly after her party. That left Bruce, Cassidy, and Emily in the tower with the occasional guest. It varied from day-to-day. Sometimes it was Steve, other times Natasha, or Clint.

As she waited for the beginning of school, Emily either spent most of her time with Cassidy out on the town. As much as Bruce hated it, he knew he could not keep her locked away in the tower. Her best friend Cassie acted as much as a bodyguard as she did a personal chaperone. She drove them everywhere and they had no qualms about stopping at every shoe store in sight. Her friend even loved the fact that Tony gave Emily her own credit card linked to his account.

"I have money," he said as he handed her the plastic card. Nervously she took it studied it carefully, "more than I know what to do with. Please, use for it anything you want or need."

Cassidy loved the power it gave her, it made Emily feel cheap. But she was happy to let Cassie blow all of Tony's money for her.

When Emily wasn't with her best friend spending Stark's fortune she was usually with Bruce, learning how to better control her Magick. On this particular day she was sitting in the R&D lab trying to create an exact copy of an apple. Cassidy had joined them that day, munching on pretzel stick in the corner of the room.

Bruce sighed crossly, "Emily," he said sternly, "You were supposed to clone the apple."

A snort came from somewhere behind him, "Well, Doctor Banner, you have to admit you are kind of juicy."

Emily giggled as the image of Bruce leaning up against the wall winked at her and slowly faded away. Bruce shook his head and rapped her on the head,

"Try and concentrate." He ordered. Emily stuck her tongue out at him,

"You take the fun out of everything."

With a roll of his eyes he returned to his lab table and continued on with his own work, "Well if you're not going to take this seriously, you can leave." He tried to sound upset, but she could sense his amusement. It was hard to lie to each other now, but that didn't mean they couldn't try. She smirked at him,

"Don't grouchy," she scolded playfully wiggling a finger at him. He gave her smirk,

"It's hard not to when you're playing around with your powers like that." All of a sudden his fun-loving mood was gone. There was a genuine seriousness in his eyes and thoughts now. He wanted her well prepared before she went back to school. He didn't feel overly confident that she could control her powers that well. Not to mention he wanted her to be able to use her Magick in case Cassidy could not protect her. There was so much underlying stress Emily was surprised she didn't see it before.

Cassidy, sensing the tension, quietly left the room so the two could have peace. Very slowly Emily walked over to his side. Bruce's attention was focused on a piece of paper in his hands; worry and panic were starting to rush through his mind as much as he tried to stem it. She touched him on the arm and he sighed wearily through his nose.

And just like she did when he was upset or angry, she wrapped him in her arms. Comfort and love poured from her heart and soul telling him not to worry. He clutched her in his embrace, head buried in her neck. He held on for dear life,

"I don't want to lose you again…" his whisper was desperate. Emily could only imagine what his life would be life if he ever lost her again. She ran her fingers over his hair and kissed his cheek.

"You won't," she promised. Very slowly he lifted his head to capture her mouth with his, tightening his grip on her. He grumbled low in his chest. Something he always did when the Hulk was on the edges of his consciousness looking out at her, "I won't ever leave you again."

And that was a promise _she_ was never going to break.

* * *

_**A/N: Next arc starts in the next chapter! Whohoo! I have so much planned for these last chapters! I'm 85% done!**_

_***Happy dance***_

_**Remember CONSTRUCTIVE CRITCISM!**_

_**Pathless Spore**_


	21. New Beginning

Trust in Me  
Avengers Fanfic  
Bruce Banner/ OC  
Chapter 20  
New Beginning

_Switch on the sky and the stars glow for you  
Go see the world cause it's all so brand new  
Don't close your eyes cause your future's ready to shine  
It's just a matter of time before you learn how to fly_

_When Can I see you again-Owl City_

* * *

The meadow was the most beautiful place Emily had ever been in. The sky above her was a blue she had never seen, shining brightly with the sun high in the sky. The clouds were white and fluffy, floating by as a sweet spring breeze swept through the grass and flowers. Emily sat underneath a large shady tree, running her fingers through the greenery. She closed her eyes and breathed in the scent of the flowers as the leaves above her rustled.

She was in a white sundress with her long hair running down her back. Time ticked by slowly as she enjoyed the view.

"Emily," she looked up to her left to find that Bruce was smiling at her. He wore a pair of blue jeans and a white button up shirt, open slightly in the front to show his chest. He looked dreamy in the sunlight as he held out his hand to her. Emily took it with no hesitation.

Gracefully he helped her to her feet and held her against him. She could feel his heartbeat underneath her fingers. Their lips grazed for a breath of a kiss until something tugged on the hem of her dress. Curiously she looked down to find a little girl with green brown eyes gazing up at her. She was tiny, with long brown hair and a giggly smile. She held out her hands to Emily,

"Mommy, up!" she cried and with a laugh the young woman stooped down and swung her into her arms. The little girl squealed in delight as another pair of green brown eyes peeked around Bruce's legs. A boy the same age as the girl looked up at the man who looked so much like him and he too held out his arms. Bruce complied and brought the boy lovingly into his embrace.

They were the perfect family. Bruce and Emily stepped closer, their children in their arms. Brown eyes gazed into blue,

"Emily," he said softly as their daughter clutched to her mother, "Wake up." She furrowed her brow in confusion,

"_Time to wake up, Emily…"_

* * *

Emily groaned as a gentle hand shook her on the shoulder. She tried to grab for her blanket so she could cuddle up and go back to her wonderful dream. Bruce's familiar laugh filled the room as he took away the warm bedspread.

"Emily, you need to wake up." Bruce called softly, "Or you'll be late for your first day of school."

"Five more minutes..." She muttered as she turned to her stomach. She wanted to go back to her dream.

"No," hands traveled to her ticklish sides and she squealed, "You need to wake up."

Finally she threw back the remaining of her covers and hit Bruce with her pillow,

"That's for ruining my dream," she scolded. He laughed; he looked adorable at six in the morning with his five O'clock shadow running across his face.

"I could tell it was a good one," he teased, "You're happiness woke me up an hour ago." He leaned over on the bed and captured her in a kiss, "What was it about?"

She blushed madly and turned away to get up. He took notice but decided to let her be as amusement danced across his consciousness. Emily yawned and swung her legs over the bed, she stretched as she got up. Quickly she threw a finger to the door,

"I'm getting dressed," she said, "Flee before me!" she glanced back at Bruce and saw him roll his eyes as he turned to walk out the automatic door. "I love you!" she called,

"Not as much as I love you!" he replied loudly as the entry hissed shut. It took her over an hour to get ready. She spent much of her time trying to figure out what to wear. She tossed aside three T-shirts, four blouses, and seven dresses before settling on a black pair of skinny jeans and a gray and white stripped T-shirt. At seven o'clock she was walking into the kitchen.

Bruce was sitting with Cassidy, dressed, clean-shaven, and ready for his day in the lab. He looked up at her entrance and cocked a brow,

"Took you long enough." He said wryly. Emily stuck her tongue out at him.

"All excited about today?!" Cassidy came bouncing around the kitchen island. The witch took a moment to study what she was wearing. She was dressed like a limousine chaperone without the hat. Which was sitting on the counter.

"Of course," she replied, "What are you wearing?"

"I'll be taking to you to school. I figured since you going to school on the behalf of Mr. Stark then you should arrive in style."

Emily chuckled dryly, "I take it Tony liked that idea?"

Cassidy nodded eagerly, "He's even letting me drive his Porsche." She squealed and procured the keys to the car from her pocket. She jingled them excitedly and danced her way out of the room, "I'll be waiting the car for over an hour!"

Emily and Bruce laughed as she disappeared. She spent thirty minutes him eating her breakfast and making sure she had everything for her first day. She was carrying her bag as she walked out of the elevator and towards the front doors to Stark Tower. Bruce was hot on her heels,

"Do you have your Incantus?" he questioned, she cast him glance,

"Yes."

"Your cell phone?"

"Yes."

"Do you have—" Emily stopped mid stride and placed her hands on his chest.

"Bruce," she chastised softly, "I will be fine. Now can I go you're going to make me late?"

He laughed and kissed her gently on the lips, "Ok, be safe. Please?"

She nodded and kissed him before waving goodbye and vanishing out the door. She felt his worry flicker in her wake.

* * *

Bruce rubbed the back of his neck and turned toward the elevator. He felt nervous about letting Emily out of his sight knowing that she was so far away. But she had wanted to go back to school and he wasn't about to deny her that. He tried to prepare her as best he could, but just like always she stemmed his fear and instilled a sense of calm in his heart.

She'd be fine.

He knew that.

Now all he had to do was convince his heart.

He tried working in the lab for most of the morning. Cassidy had returned shortly after dropping off Emily bearing good news. She had settled in quite nicely. She was in her first day of class surely making new friends. The thought made Bruce smile. Cautiously he poked the base of Emily's subconscious and she was quick to reply. Mental fingers of comfort ran over him. She told him not to worry so much.

Bruce sighed.

She was fine.

He moved to the library for the afternoon. He tried flipping through a few books. He promised he would only check in on her once. Twice was sure to annoy her, he knew how much she hated it when he hovered. He was just putting away a mystery, having figured out five chapters in that the sister had killed her mother. He paused before picking up another book.

He shouldn't. She'd be mad.

But he couldn't help it.

He touched the base of her mind. Just like before she was quick to reply. But this time she jabbed at him irritably. He recoiled away instantly. He held his head in his hand, icy hot pain swept through him. That had been a warning. If he bothered her anymore she'd send him to the floor.

Mentally the Other Guy slapped him across the head. She was fine. Bruce needed to stop worrying so much. Was it strange that the Other Guy wasn't concerned? Perhaps he knew something Bruce didn't, whatever it was he decided to heed both warnings and he slunk back to his lab for the rest of the day.

* * *

Emily walked through the halls of Central Park East High School. People and faces milled past her, giving her a few glances. First for her appearance, they most likely had never seen hair as long as hers. Self consciously she held it closer to her. They could also tell there was something different about her. They parted in the halls for her as she found her locker.

She twisted the lock several times before sighing in irritation. Then, a hand came out from behind her and punched the locker. It popped open instantly. Emily turned and found herself face to face with a tiny girl wearing purple glasses. Her hair was cropped and angled and obviously dyed red. She smirked at Emily,

"You just got to hit it a few times," she advised, "Trust me; I had that one last year." The strange girl gave the witch a once over, "So you're the new girl?"Emily nodded nervously. She had been here the entire day and not once had anyone talked to her, except her teachers. The other girl laughed at her wary expression,

"Aww, come on, I don't bite. Hard." Emily smiled as the girl snatched away her schedule and glanced it, "My name is Brandy by the way. Looks like we've Biology together, come on I'll take you there." Brandy grabbed her by the hand and proceeded to lead her through the halls. She yelled and shoved her way through the halls with the witch in tow. They walked up a set of stairs and took an immediate left and walked into the classroom.

The walls and shelves were lined with jars and various things floating in them. The room was split between the classroom and the lab. And sitting at the teachers' desk, in a clear glass cage, was the largest spider Emily had ever seen. She shuddered as Brandy found them a seat at the front of the room. The teacher was a middle-aged man, he was looking at a sheet of paper in his hands as the bell rang and the class quieted down.

"Welcome class," he called as he came around his desk, "Many of you know who I am but for those who are new," he nodded at Emily, "and to those who were too wasted over the summer to remember," a boy in the back snorted and leaned back in his chair, "I'm Andrew Jackson and I'm your Biology teacher for this year."

Emily listened intently as he went over the class rules and handed out the syllabus. It was towards the end of the half day. She was ready to go home and get her things ready for tomorrow. After Mr. Jackson's speech he let the class talk for the remainder of the time, Brandy spun in her seat and grinned at Emily.

"So where'd you live before this."

The witch hesitated, "Here and there, I was in Ireland for a while. I spent some time in Italy before moving to Paris for a short while."

"Wow, you've been everywhere." The red head looked very impressed before stealing Emily's schedule again, "Third lunch, you can sit with me and my friends." The final bell rang and instantly the class was up and out of the room in a flurry of clothes. "See you tomorrow, Emily!" called Brandy as the witch walked out of the front doors.

Cassidy was waiting for her with Tony's sleek black Porsche. She was still dressed in chauffeurs outfit and she grinned at Emily as she opened the back,

"So how was it?" she questioned as she helped her in. the witch shrugged her shoulders. Cassidy slipped into the front seat and took off without as much as a backwards look. When they arrived at Stark Tower Emily couldn't wait to tell Bruce about her day and the friend she had made. She ran up into the elevator and after JARVIS told her where he was, she barged into the lab and nearly tackled him to the floor.

"Good day?" he inquired with a laugh, wrapping her up in his arms.

She giggled, "Yes, after you stopped bothering me."

He grumbled under his breath in exasperation and rolled his eyes before kissing her softly on the mouth. She had a feeling this was going to be a great school year.

* * *

_**A/N: Another chapter. Somehow I get the feeling that I won't be able to finish this story before Summer College starts. I'll try to update when I'm in school but I can't make any promises. It'll be nearly impossible in the fall since I've got 18 hours a week of classes then. The things I do to get an education.**_

_**So please, leave CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM in the review box.**_

_**Pathless Spore**_


	22. Drabbles

Trust in Me  
Avengers Fanfic  
Bruce Banner/OC  
Chapter 21  
Drabbles

_So take the photographs, and still frames in your mind  
Hang it on a shelf in good health and good time  
Tattoos of memories and dead skin on trial  
For what it's worth it was worth all the while_

_It's something unpredictable, but in the end is right,_  
_I hope you had the time of your life._

_Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)- Green Day_

* * *

Bruce waited patiently in the Library for Emily's return. It was officially three weeks into the new school year and she had it with her Math teacher. She came home nearly in tears one day begging for his help because she couldn't understand why her teacher wanted her to show her work when she had gotten the answer right in the first place. Bruce laughed at her; of course he had gotten hit in retaliation. So every day he tutored her in the library.

Now Emily was off looking for the phone. JARVIS said that Tony had called but Cassidy on the phone at the time and didn't answer. The witch took the moment to flee in terror before her homework. Bruce didn't remember Algebra II being this hard. As he looked over Emily's work he wondered if her teacher was even certified. His course work was way too hard for an average Algebra class. Then again he was smarter than the average bear.

Bruce looked up as the library elevator doors opened bringing Emily talking on the phone. He knitted his brows at the confusion and exasperation written in her face,

"Ok, Tony," Emily's voice was calm and slow, like she was talking to a child instead of genius billionaire, "I'm going to need you to hand the phone over to Pepper so you can concentrate on finding the snake."

The doctors' eyes shot open with surprise and he swiftly turned his head towards her. She waved him off as she continued to talk to Pepper,

"Seriously, how long has he been awake? That long, have you considered knocking him out with a sledgehammer? Pepper, it's just a suggestion, but something's got to be done."

Bruce sighed wearily and rested his head in his palm. Tony's episodes were getting beyond ridiculous. Eventually Stark managed to find the snake and Emily was abruptly hung up on as he went to take care of it. Banner shook his head, poor Pepper…

The Witch tossed aside the device in her hand and grudgingly returned to Bruce's side. He smirked at her as she continued her complaining.

* * *

Emily and Brandy sat in the kitchen giggling. In front of them were their study sheets, preparing them for their test tomorrow. Except they weren't really studying, they were talking about Emily's boyfriend.

It had taken some time for Emily to trust Brandy with her lifestyle. When she had taken the feisty redhead home she was more upset at the fact she hadn't been trusted more than anything. Brandy didn't judge her for what she wore, or how she acted, or how she lived. The tiny girl cared more about Emily's personality and morals, which was why they got along so well. The redhead didn't even care that she was dating some two times older than she was. To her, it just didn't matter.

For that, Emily was thankful.

"Ok," Brandy was tapping her pencil incessantly on the table, "So your boyfriend is a superhero. He turns into big and green. That's cool. Now let me ask this, what's your super power?"

"What do you mean?" Emily stuttered nervously. Brandy laughed at her, and rapped her on the head with the pencil,

"Do you think I'm stupid? Number one: you're carrying big black book in your bag all the time. I know I've looked at it, I can't read a word. Number two: You glow, not like neon lighting or anything. It's like this soft gold outline. It's only noticeable if you really concentrate. Number three: don't think I didn't see that little trick the other day. The one where you flicked a finger and Miss Prissy of the School fell back into the trash can. That Ho is not that clumsy in heels."

Emily blushed, Casey Williams, the beauty queen of the school, had been bothering their group. In the end she had ended up insulting the Witch. Of course she wasn't going to take that lying down, so when no one was looking she cast a quick spell and tripped her. It was by luck alone she fell into the trash can. Apparently she hadn't been as discreet as she thought. Brandy just grinned,

"Come on, Emily. When are you going to trust me? In case you haven't noticed, I'm not like the rest of the peons in the world jumping through someone else's hoops."

The witch smiled, "You're right, and I'm sorry. After what I've been through it's really hard to trust others."

"I understand, but seriously, what's your power?"

Emily laughed and the two girls leaned in closer to each other.

* * *

"You stuck the bottle where?"

Emily glanced up at Bruce in concern. He was pacing back and forth across the Library floor, rubbing the bridge of his nose. It was heading towards the early evening; she was working on her English homework and looking forward to tomorrow. When it was a school year Friday's could not come fast enough. She sighed wearily as Bruce groaned in irritation.

She felt his cross mood flash across her mind and his stress levels began to rise. Emily was sure Tony wouldn't appreciate the Hulk trashing his place so she quickly abandoned her paper. Just as he was about to lay into Stark she took the phone, hung up and tossed it aside.

"He is turning out to be more trouble than he's worth." He growled, green flashing across his eyes and tainting his skin. Emily chuckled and touched his face softly, instantly he calmed down. The effect she had on him was amazing; she never considered that her presence alone could have such calming result on him.

Bruce sighed wearily and gripped her arms gently, "Come on, let's get back to work."

She nodded wordlessly and the two resumed cuddling on the couch.

* * *

Emily shifted nervously on her feet as the stern Music Director studied her. Mr. Victor scrutinized her for what seemed like forever until he silently pointed to the piano in the far corner of the Band room. Swallowing she went over and took a seat. And without being told to she played her scales. He was still silent after the last note fell away and unable to take the quiet Emily did what she knew best.

She played.

The notes were soft at first as she began Beethoven's 14th Sonata, The moonlight Sonata. It was a beautiful piece of music, melancholy and slow. She personally liked it for the moods it instilled in her. Mr. Victor did nothing to stop her as she played the first six minutes of the song. The part she liked best. Afterwards, when the class room was once again silent, the Music Director finally spoke.

His voice gruff, short, but not unkind, "We begin practice afterschool starting tomorrow and with only the basics. I won't allow you to waste what little talent you have."

Emily smiled as she heard him walk away. She got the distinct feeling that the man liked her, despite his words. She chuckled softly and gathered her things before leaving the room.

* * *

Bruce glanced at the clock again as he sat in the kitchen. Emily was at her one on one music class with the Music Director of her school. He had seen Emily's talent and had taken it upon himself to give her private lessons. Bruce knew she was happy to finally being doing something she loved. More than anything in the world she wanted to have a career at what she did best. And the good doctor wanted nothing more than for her to follow her dreams.

Mr. Victor was not an unkind man, but he did not sugar coat his words. He was stern and pushed Emily to her limits. Bruce knew for a fact he wouldn't do that if there wasn't something special about the young Witch. Then, from behind, he heard the door open. Banner smiled as he glanced back over his shoulder at Emily. She looked worn out; Victor must have really laid into her today.

Two months had passed since the beginning of the school year. With homework and the extra piano lessons it was no wonder Emily looked like she had been pulled through the mill. He hummed softly as she found a seat next to him and laid her head on his shoulder. It was Friday night; they'd do her homework tomorrow. For now he let her fall asleep where she was.

* * *

"That's it!" Emily cried, throwing her pencil halfway across the room. Bruce eyed her with amusement as she fumed furiously at her Math Study Sheet, "I have had it, tomorrow I'm telling Hoffman he can shove it up his—"

Bruce threw an M&M at her, a light snack he had been munching on as he worked, and instantly she stopped her ranting to glare up at him. He threateningly held up another,

"Calm down, you're overreacting again."

She hissed vehemently at him and crumpled up her sheet. After chucking that in the garbage can she crossed her arms and proceeded to brood with a vengeance. Bruce rolled his eyes and tossed the chocolate candy in his mouth. He strode over to her side and wrapped his arms around her shoulders. She mumbled under her breath and tried to ignore him.

He eventually got her to smile by kissing her neck,

"He has it out for me, Bruce. I swear he does."

Chuckling he retrieved the crumpled paper from the garbage and smoothed it out in front of her,

"Then stick it to him, and pass the damn test." He ruffled her hair and returned to his computer, "You can do it, if you don't frustrate yourself first."

Emily stuck her tongue out at him.

* * *

_**A/N: A series of short and slightly funny drabbles, something before my classes start tomorrow. I hope you like it!**_

_**Remember, CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM!**_

_**Pathless Spore**_


	23. Angela Young

Trust in Me  
Avengers Fanfic  
Bruce Banner/OC  
Chapter 22  
Angela Young

"…_Music, even in situations of the greatest horror, should never be painful to the ear,  
but should flatter and charm it, and thereby always remain music…"_

_-Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart_

* * *

_**A/N: So this is the beautiful love child between six hours of Beethoven's many Piano Sonata's and the plot bunny humping the hell out of my leg. Enjoy!**_

* * *

Emily nearly danced out of her Math class in excitement. In her hand she held her last test with a giant A- in red on the top. It was all she could do not to turn around a give Hoffman her middle finger. She had passed the test she had dreaded for over a week now. It counted for over fifty percent of her grade and Hoffman was no pushover. Emily was sure the man had it out for her, because he made it a point of personal pride to be a thorn in her side.

With that unbound joy running through her veins she managed to make it through Biology with a smile on her face. She wanted to enjoy it before Mr. Victor wiped it off for her. The Music Director was a short, slightly overweight man who took nonsense from no one. He was short, to the point, and did nothing to sugar coat his words. And he was the absolute best piano teacher she had to date.

He disregarded all the work she had been taught so far and made her start from scratch. He drilled scales and lessons into her head and had no problem smacking her hands if she messed up. He drove her relentlessly, cramming all the basics into her head until she couldn't take any more. Then still he shoved more in. He was not a generally unkind man, but he saw skill and talent that needed more nurturing and practice. And he said he wasn't going to let her waste it.

At the end of the day she retrieved her coat and bag from her locker, bid goodbye to Brandy, and slowly made her way upstairs to the band room. As usual Mr. Victor was sitting in his chair beside the piano, his dreaded ruler in his hand. She swallowed, dropped her things by the door, and took a seat on the bench. Then, without being told to, she began her warm ups.

They worked for over an hour. After four months of hard work and determination, and a lot of in home practice she had improved greatly. She had begun to recognize many of her mistakes. One hand usually drowned out the other, and she had a bad habit of embellishing notes. There were times she hesitated in the music, losing her tempo and other times she played too fast.

It was nearing the end of November, before the Christmas break next month they were going to have their annual Christmas program. Mr. Victor was going to put her in if she showed that she had learned something. They were nearing the end of their lesson when a knock came at the door.

"Keep playing," order Mr. Victor as he got out of his seat. She did as she was told, concentrating on playing the notes right. A minute or two passed before she heard the door open. She recognized her Music teacher's footsteps but another pair had joined him. Obviously female, they were high heels. They clicked against the floor methodically. Whispers could be heard over the music but Emily did not dare to stop and look.

Suddenly, Victor's hand stopped hers and he placed a music sheet in front of her. She studied it briefly: The Adagio in Beethoven's first Sonata.

"Begin." Ordered her teacher and without hesitation she started playing. The song was slow for the most part. As she went through the notes she wondered who the second voice she was hearing. She then shook herself out of her thoughts and focused on her music. She watched carefully, making sure that both hands were playing separately instead of together, she made sure not to embellish the notes, playing them as they were written.

After she was done she laid her hands in her lap and the room was plunged into silence. Then—

"Turn around, child." The older woman's voice made her shiver. It demanded respect and obediently she turned in her seat. Emily's eyes went wide. The woman standing in front of her was tall, lithe, with gray eyes. Her blonde gray hair was pulled back into a tight bun. For a moment the Witch forgot how to breathe.

She knew who this woman was.

Anyone who was anybody in music knew who she was.

It was Angela Young. All the great pianists of her age got their start by this woman.

Emily did not feel worthy to be in the presence of such an influential figure.

Angela smiled and turned to Victor, "She has incredible talent, where on earth did you find her?" The old man grunted irritably,

"She's one of our students and her skills are mediocre at best."

The older woman laughed and patted him gently on the arm, "There is nothing a little practice won't fix, and you've done a marvelous job with her so far." She turned back to the Witch again, "What is your name, child?"

"Emily." She stuttered as she managed to find her voice. Mrs. Young studied her for several long minutes leaving Emily shaking under her gaze. Angela then took Mr. Victor off to the side. Why did Emily feel like her entire life was hanging in the balance? Their voices were quiet as they bantered back and forth. The witch felt like she was going to be sick.

After another long tense wait Mrs. Young finally returned to her, "You have promise, Emily, despite what Mr. Victor claims. I would like to talk to you about your career in music. May I have your address?"

As Emily recited it for her she watched as the woman's brows rose in surprise. If she had any misgivings of her home, she said nothing of it. She set the date for the coming Friday and with one last smile she left. When the door closed Emily finally allowed herself to faint.

* * *

Bruce glared crossly at the video phone. Tony grinned sheepishly at him but said nothing. Another ridiculous call from Stark and his nerves were already halfway to hell. What concerned him more was Emily. His stomach had done several flips and lurched to his throat before he felt her faint. Panic had nearly sent him running out of the tower until she came around and calmed him.

Her sickening nervous emotions were quickly replaced by unbridled joy and happiness. He had the feeling Mr. Victor had let her out of their lessons early. This piqued his curiosity and he patiently waited for her to return home.

Fifteen minutes later she came barging through the R&D door screaming, "I have fantastic news!"

"You got an A+ on your Algebra test?" he inquired as she came around the table. Tony snorted,

"Hey now, she said it was fantastic news not a miracle."

Emily dug around in her bag and procured a piece of paper, "A-!" she stated proudly, her chin raised in defiance. She showed it to Tony who backed off with a dramatic bow. "But that's not my fantastic news."

"Spit it out!" called Stark and Emily squealed in excitement,

"Angela Young wants to sit down and talk with me about my music career!"

"You're serious?!" Tony looked just as excited as Emily did, leaving Bruce in utter confusion, "_The_ Angela Young?"

"Yes!"

"Time out," Bruce looked between the two, "Who is Angela Young?"

Tony scoffed loudly, "She's private benefactor to the New York Institute of the Arts. Emily, this is amazing. If you're lucky Angela will sponsor you and help you kick start your career!"

So that was why Emily had fainted. It was obvious she had known who the woman was; it was Emily's lifelong dream to play in concert halls. And Angela Young had the means to help the young prodigy get there. This really was fantastic news.

"When is she coming, Emily?"

The young woman was shaking with excitement, "This Friday, I already let the secretary know she'll be here." She laughed and jumped into Bruce's arms, "Can you believe it, Angela Young!" The doctor smiled.

* * *

Friday could not come fast enough for Emily. For nearly four days she danced through the week on cloud nine before plummeting to the Earth on Thursday evening. She went through her piano lessons as usual, but with more vigor and tenacity, determined to rectify any and all of her mistakes. Something that Victor took notice of.

When Friday finally arrived she spent the whole day worrying what was going to happen. Mr. Victor allowed her to go home early as well, it didn't take a genius to know she looked a little sick to her stomach.

Bruce sat in the penthouse level with her, stroking her arm gently as she tried not to freak out. She was shaking again transferring all of her fears and stress to him, even though she tried not to. When five o'clock finally came and Angela walked out of the elevator Emily was sure her heart was going to stop all together. Very gracefully she walked around the couch and sat herself down in one of the plush chairs. Mrs. Young smiled at both of them as she clutched a packet of papers in her hands.

"Good afternoon, Emily, how are you?" She was trying to be kind to the obviously scared Witch but it wasn't doing much. She turned even paler as Bruce rubbed her shoulders comfortingly,

"It's an honor to meet you, Mrs. Young," he greeted, the older woman cocked a brow and bowed her head,

"Likewise, I am not a woman of science, Doctor Banner, but a man of your stature is well renowned. But enough of you, I am here to talk about Emily, who seems to have lost her powers of speech."

Emily smiled at the tease, relaxing slightly at the polite banter. She swallowed again and gradually stopped trembling. Sure that the young woman wasn't about to pass out on her, Mrs. Young fixed her blouse and folded her hands on her knee,

"I'll begin by saying I am very impressed by your skills, Emily. You have much talent and have worked very hard for what you have, a fool can see that. If pushed in the right direction, you have a very promising career ahead of you. And that is precisely why I am here; I want to give you that push that you need."

Bruce and Emily listened to her intently as she smiled and handed her the packet, "I'm here offering a Sponsorship, Emily. What that means is I am taking you under my wing and paying for all the expenses required to get your name out there. It also means I'm able to make recommendations to Concert Halls and record companies to get your music out there.

"For a small fee, of course." Muttered Bruce taking the packet out of Emily's hand. He studied it carefully as Angela smiled wryly,

"Doctor Banner, if I outright told you that I was willing to Sponsor Emily for nothing in return what on earth would you think?"

He glanced at her, "I'd think you were full of it." He replied dryly earning a laugh from the older woman.

"Exactly, I cannot play this game on kindness alone; this industry isn't what it used to be. No one can play music for the sheer joy anymore, if they did no one would get anywhere and there'd be no music in the world left to enjoy. At least with me I can get Emily deals with less bloodthirsty competitors who will be less likely to cheat her. All I want is twenty-five percent of what she makes."

Then, Angela stood and held out her hand for Emily to shake,

"It was nice to meet you, dear. But please, think about my offer. This is a big decision and must be considered carefully, once you take that first step there's no going back."

"Thank you." Emily found her voice and sheepishly smiled at Mrs. Young. The older woman nodded and placed her business card in her hand. With that final goodbye she disappeared inside the elevator. Emily sat back on the couch with a huff and breathed a huge sigh of relief. Bruce was still studying the contract in his hands.

"What do I do, Bruce?" she whispered, "This is an opportunity of a lifetime."

"I know it is, Emily," he replied as he threw the packet on to the table, "If you wanted my honest opinion I'd say you'd be fool not to take it. My problem is I don't want her to cheat you." He grasped her hand and pulled her in close, "But it's your decision, if you really want to do this it has to be your choice, not mine."

Emily smiled and sighed as he kissed her forehead, "I really want this, Bruce."

"Then, I'll be right there beside you." He promised softly, "Every step of the way."

* * *

_**A/N: This is what happens when I listen to Beethoven for over six hours. I think I need to do this more often, I'd be updating my stories more that's for sure. This is it guys, just a few more chapters and then we're done.**_

_**Slowly but surely we're getting there!**_

_**Remember, CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM!**_

_**Pathless Spore**_


	24. The Contract

Trust in Me  
Avengers Fanfic  
Bruce Banner/OC  
Chapter 23  
The Contract

_I'll be your crying shoulder  
I'll be love's suicide  
And I'll be better when I'm older  
And I'll be the greatest fan of your life_

_I'll be- Edwin McCain_

* * *

Emily was torn from sleep by Bruce's tragic cry. She bolted into a sitting position and looked over to find him tossing on the bed. He clutched the sheets desperately in his hands, tears streaming down his face. Confused, she leaned over and shook his shoulder gently,

"Bruce," she called softly, but he could not hear her. He sobbed harder and tore the comforter. Green flashed across his skin briefly. Emily started to panic; his emotions were a jumbled mess. She couldn't perceive up from down as he tossed and turned. Frantically, she crawled over to him and straddled him, trying to hold him down and wake him up. He fought her as she tried to pin his wrists to the bed. Unable to think of anything else she finally grasped his head and dove straight into his dream.

They were in the Tower, on the penthouse floor. The entire room had been entirely destroyed, glass lay scattered everywhere, wiring hung from the ceilings and the furniture had been tossed haphazardly around. Sitting in the middle of the floor was Bruce cradling a person in his arms. Very carefully she crept up to him from behind and peeked over his shoulder.

Her hands flew to her mouth as she beheld herself in his arms. She was bloody and beaten. Several gashes marked her body, blood poured from the wounds and from her mouth. The dying Emily kept smiling gently at Bruce, who sobbed,

"Emily, please, don't leave me!" he clutched her even tighter against him, his tears slipped from his face and dropped on to hers. The vision in his arms touched his face softly, like she always did before whenever he was upset. It was weak, beautiful, and so very tragic. Then, as the light left her eyes her hand fell against the ground.

Bruce's anguished cry was too much for the real Emily to bear. She dropped to the floor next to him and brought him in close. He was too far gone in his despair to realize that the real her was here with him. As he sobbed in her lap she tried to wake him up. Before she could, however, she was pulled back from the dream. She fell backwards off of Bruce and off the bed as green painted his skin. The change happened so swiftly she didn't know what to do once the Hulk was sitting in the remains of her bed.

Tears streamed down his face too as he gazed confusedly down at the wooden splinters beneath his feet. Emily carefully got to her feet and approached the green giant. He grunted in irritation and his intense gaze snapped up to her. Shock crossed his features, she could understand that. The dream had been very real to Bruce and thus very real to the Hulk. He had expected to find her dead at his feet. He looked relieved to find her alive.

His hand reached out and took her by the waist. She gasped as she was lifted from the ground and brought in close to his chest. His comforting rumble was broken; with a reassuring and gentle smile she reached out and touched his face. The Hulk closed his green eyes and sighed, now that she was safe and alive he had no worries. Emily's problem was how she was going to get her Bruce back. But she then realized that her green giant had not been out to play recently. This was a perfect time to introduce him to a special room Tony had designed a few months ago.

"Set me down, love," she whispered softly. He looked like he wanted to argue with her; it earned him a stern glare. Abashedly he set her to her feet. Emily took him by the hand and led him out the door. She spent five minutes trying to figure how to get him out into the hallway when he just smashed his way through. She led him down the cramped hall until she came to the sixth door on her right. It hissed open to reveal a large room. It used to be four different master bedrooms at one time until Tony got sick and tired of repairing his precious building.

He then turned those rooms into one gigantic destruction room modeled after the streets of New York. The ground beneath her was real asphalt and though the buildings above her did not tower to the sky they still gave the illusion that they were real. Tony had even gone so far as to add ambience, she could hear car horns and people talking as she led the Hulk to what appeared to be the middle of the room.

He gazed around at the buildings and then looked questioningly down at her,

"This room is for you, love," she explained, "Now you don't have to tear up Tony's entire house to get rid of your anger." He didn't look all that convinced. He brushed a giant finger against a life-sized model car. With a chuckle she wiggled a finger at him, "Watch, you'll see what I mean."

Emily held out her hand and took a deep breath. She felt her Magick spring to life instantly. Using her powers had become so much easier since her bond with Bruce. Now she could call upon them anytime she wished without using her Mantra Incantus as a guide. A ball of fire lit up in her hand, blazing brightly. Without hesitation she threw it at a trash can and set the object a blaze with a loud boom.

Emily laughed loudly as it went flying and hit the ground with a thud, "I can see why you like doing this!" she called happily forcing her powers out and sending a light pole flying. The Hulk snorted in amusement and the car was sent sailing afterwards.

* * *

Emily sat patiently on the ground next to Bruce's slowly shrinking body. She and the Hulk had spent the rest of the night tearing up the Destruction Room. Buildings and cars lay in ruin around them, testaments to the fun the two had. When all of his excess energy had been spent he lay back against a nearby building and rumbled off into sleep, cradling Emily in his arms.

When he began to change back to Bruce, she took the time to run off to find him a change of clothes. Finally he returned to normal and ever so softly she began to stroke his hair. With a strangled groan he came to.

"Emily?" He sat up and held his head in his palm. Tenderly she touched his shoulder as Bruce came to his senses. He looked up at her with chocolate-brown eyes, she smiled at him,

"Are you ok?"

He nodded, "Who got hurt?"

Emily giggled earning her a hard glare. She flicked her gaze around, "We're not really on the streets, this is the destruction room Tony built for you. So no one got hurt," she paused in amusement, "Well I can't say the same for my poor bed."

"Sorry…"

She chuckled again and waved her hand, "It's alright," then she gracefully got to her feet, "Get dressed; I have to go put out the fire."

"Fire?"

Bruce's gaze flicked behind her and she turned to admire the slowly burning car. She grinned down at him and shrugged her shoulders, "I had a little too much fun."

"Obviously." Was Bruce's dry reply.

* * *

Bruce polished off the last of his diet coke and tossed the can into garbage. Slowly he rubbed his temples and turned away from the bar to watch Emily pace the floor nervously. Morning had come and gone swiftly. After putting out the huge fires raging in the destruction room, he and Emily waited for one o'clock with apprehension.

Emily was going to sign Angela Young's contract. This was her lifelong dream, and she wanted it more than anything else in the world. As she looked out the windows he gazed off into space, his mind wandering to the disturbing nightmare.

It had terrified him; he had nearly lost her once. The thought of her truly dying was physically painful. His heart clenched tightly in his chest, Emily's head whipped around to him. Quickly he averted his gaze from her piercing blue eyes. Her comforting aura washed over him slowly as she came up to his side. Tenderly she reached up and kissed him.

A soft sound brought their attention to the elevator. As professional as ever, Angela Young came striding out of the contraption talking sternly on the phone,

"Let Anderson throw his temper tantrum then, I don't care, but you tell him if he doesn't talk to my client I will take my business elsewhere."

She closed her phone with a loud snap; she took a moment to calm herself before turning towards them. Angela smiled at them; swiftly Emily left Bruce's side to greet the older woman,

"Good afternoon, Emily, are you ready?" she indicated to the nearby loveseat and the two took a seat. Carefully Angela took out the official contract and a pen, before handing it over to the young woman, "Now before you sign I have to ask if you're sure, this contract is binding for five years, once you put your name on that paper you can't go back."

"Mrs. Young," Emily looked the older woman in the eyes, "I've dreamed about this day ever since I was a little girl. I want this; I want this more than anything."

Angela chuckled and handed the pen over, "Then sign."

Bruce felt Emily's excitement and satisfaction as she signed the contract in her hands. When she finally put the large packet down, Mrs. Young swept it up and stowed safely in her briefcase. Professionally she clasped her hands and crossed her ankles,

"Emily, I understand that you're in the final year of high school, but I wouldn't ask this if I wasn't sure you were ready to take on the challenge. As your sponsor it's my job to help you get your name out there and I believe I know where to begin." Mrs. Young once again reached inside her briefcase and pulled out another piece of paper.

Curious, Bruce wandered from the bar and leaned over Emily's shoulder. It was an advertisement for a Music Festival in the spring,

"A music festival?"

Angela smirked, "Yes, it's a perfect place to start. Carnegie Hall hosts the festival every year, and you have a good chance of getting noticed if you start there. Please keep in mind, that though you'll be performing in Carnegie Hall it's not a solo performance; that will come later in your career."

Emily nodded eagerly, clenching the paper in her hands tightly. Bruce smiled and grasped her shoulder comfortingly,

"The Festival allows participants to play well-known pieces and originals; I'm allowing you to pick which you'd like to perform. Whichever one you do decide on I want you to focus your energy over Christmas Break to practicing. As they say, first impression is key, and I want you to have a fantastic first impression." Angela Young got to her feet, followed closely by Emily. The two women shook hands, "I'll call occasionally to check in on you, and when you decide on what you'll play please call me to let me know."

"Of course," The witch nodded assuredly and escorted Mrs. Young to the elevator. After parting ways Emily squealed and turned to run into his waiting arms,

"I can't believe it, Carnegie Hall; I know a lot of other musicians will be there, but still!"

"You know what they say about getting to Carnegie Hall?" teased Bruce quietly. Emily chuckled,

"Practice, practice, practice."

"Then you better get started, there's nothing wrong with a head start," he advised as he kissed her forehead, "Do you know what you're going to do?"

Emily shook her head, "Not really, I figured I'd do a piece I know but it sounds so cheap."

"Then do an original, I'm sure you'll have no problem creating one."

"I guess," mused the witch quietly, Bruce felt the worry flash over her consciousness and he hummed softly in his chest,

"Sleep on it tonight," he advised, "For now let's celebrate, and then we can call Tony later and let him know you've accepted Angela's offer."

Emily smiled softly at him, her blue eyes dancing with joy. The sight made Bruce happy; she was so pleased it was starting to rub off on him. This was a new start for her, and he'd be right there at her side every single step of the way.

* * *

**_A/N: Sorry about the slow update, my Teacher has been really layin gthe homework on us and she's got me swamped. So I've been deviding my time between studying and writing out three other chpaters for my books._**

**_Anywho, I believe you all know the drill, read and leave CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM in the review box. Pretty please?_**

**_Pathless Spore_**


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